I can’t believe the nerve of some people – telling God what to do. That takes guts, nerve and stupidity all rolled up into one!
Abraham’s servant told God what to do. Of all the nerve! It all started when Abraham told his oldest servant, the man in charge of his whole household, to find his son Isaac a wife. Now that’s a tall order! The servant hesitantly agreed (like he had a choice!) and traveled to Abraham’s homeland to find his son a wife.
Can you imagine what was going through the servant’s mind as he made his journey? “Why did Abraham choose me for this job? Isn’t this a little above and beyond my job description? Why didn’t I put in for early retirement?” It’s easy to see why this servant may have been a little stressed out when he reached his destination.
So he does what any stressed-out guy would do – he gives God instructions. (Maybe it should have been the other way around – God giving him the instructions – but we’ll give him some grace because of his stress level.) As he sits by the well outside of town, he lays out his plan that God should follow. His plan is almost comical.
He says, “O LORD … See, I am standing beside this spring, and the daughters of the townspeople are coming out to draw water. May it be that when I say to a girl, ‘Please let down your jar that I may have a drink,’ and she says, ‘Drink, and I’ll water your camels too’ – let her be the one you have chosen for your servant Isaac.”
That took a lot of nerve, laying out a specific plan for God. Let’s see what happened next.
Before he finished praying, a young woman named Rebekah came out with her water jar and filled it. The servant asked her for some water from her jar. She replied, “Drink, my lord … I’ll draw water for your camels, too.”
Bingo! Ding, ding, ding … we have a winner!
However, the servant wasn’t so sure. The Scripture says the servant watched her in silence, wondering whether or not the LORD had made his journey successful.
Really? Let me get this straight. The servant lays out a specific plan for God, watches as God answers his prayer – to the letter, and then wonders if she is the right one? My first reaction after reading this passage was, “Duh!” Of course she’s the one!
Then I thought about how many times God has answered my prayers and it took me a while to realize it. How many times has He answered me and I forgot to thank Him? How many times have I gone on with my life without giving proper thanks and credit to Him? Of all the nerve!
In the end, the servant does give praise to God, and he bowed down and worshiped Him. Let’s remember to keep our eyes open to where God is working and to give Him the glory for answered prayer.
Scripture: Genesis 24:1-27
Prayer: Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for all of the times You’ve answered our prayers. You work in our lives so often and we want to notice all of the great ways You provide for us every day. Thank you for what you’ve done in our lives today and this week. I specifically want to say thanks for …
