In the movie “Christmas Vacation”, Clark (Chevy Chase) has a goal. He just knew that he was going to get his annual Christmas bonus. He had ordered and put a down payment on a luxurious pool for his family and was so excited. I bet time flew by that year for him because he had a goal in hand. Well, Christmas came, and his bonus was NOT what he had expected. It was a one year membership to the Jelly-of-the-month club. He was “fit-to-be-tied”! Well, in today’s scripture reading, Jacob had a goal in mind too. He planned to marry his love, Rachel, after he worked for 7 years for his future father-in-law. Time flew by for him and the day had arrived. The excitement was in the air and after a night of “officially becoming husband and wife”, the lights must have come on because he discovered that he did NOT get what he expected. There lie Leah, and not Rachel (her sister)! I bet he was “fit-to-be-tied” too. Well, in these two scenarios the boss/dad handled things differently. Clark did immediately get an apology and his bonus plus some in the end. Jacob did get Rachel, but after a minor custom clarification and seven more years of work. I guess some things you can get out of these instances are: Goals are great to have. Make sure you know all the rules/laws. Be prepared for the unexpected. Time flies when you can envision the end. Work hard. You will get what you deserve in the end. And above it all, include God. Ask Him for guidance and for His will to be done.
And the story continues…Reading the scriptures of the love triangle, no wait the love pentagon, was like watching a Ping-Pong match gone violent. The players were Jacob, Rachel, Leah, Zilpah, and Bilhah. Ugh! What a reading. But afterwards you can be reassured that another lesson learned is to not take matters into your own hands. Again, INCLUDE GOD FROM THE GET GO, and save yourself some trouble. When it is all about us, people (and self) will get hurt.
