I was just doing the math. If Sarah gave birth to Isaac when she was ninety and she died when she one hundred twenty-seven, that would make Isaac at least thirty-seven when he married Rachel. And I thought I got married late at twenty-five. This was his first marriage. We don't know how many dates Isaac had or even if he had any girlfriends. We do know that Abraham wouldn't let his son marry a local girl.
The story of Isaac getting a wife is an interesting one. Abe sends his chief servant back to Abe's homeland to pick a wife for his son. He sends plenty of money and goodies as a dowry. Now the chief servant swore an oath that he'd get a quality girl from Abe's family background, from his father's family for Isaac. The chief servant wanted to take Isaac with him, but Abe wouldn't let him go. The chief servant goes to pick out a wife for Isaac and Isaac doesn't get a say so or even a look before it all goes down. At least on e-Harmony you can check out someone's profile. Not so in this case.
It's hard for us think about arranged marriages. It's not our custom these days. We date and romance and IM and chat and date some more, looking for our "Soul Mate." We spend tons of time and emotional energy searching for the right one. We put ourselves out there and then hope we won't get hurt. Maybe Abe and the chief servant had a better idea, let God choose.
The chief servant made the trip all the way back to Abe's homeland, which was the only criteria Abe set for his son's wife. When the chief servant got there he prayed a simple prayer, "God, I have no idea who to choose so help me out, please (Dave's paraphrase)." He laid out a simple identification plan and before he was done praying in his heart, God brought Rebekah to him. She met the qualifications, was outgoing and had an incredible servants heart.
The wild thing is that Rebekah said yes to marrying Isaac sight unseen. She'd never met Isaac or Abraham. She really didn't know what she was getting into. No dates. No IMing. No chats. No pictures. No romance. No nothing. The only thing she had was the assurance of God that this was the right thing to do.
Is it possible that we go about finding a life mate the wrong way? Instead of looking for someone on our own, wouldn't we do better to ask for God's assistance? Attraction to the opposite sex is a natural thing. God put it there. But, just like everything else in life, it seems to me that we have a tendency to pursue things without the consult of God's wisdom. Marriage was God's idea in the first place. Since He created us, it only makes sense that we should seek God's person for us in His timing.
God, thanks for the gift of marriage. Your wisdom is far beyond ours. You know our hearts, mind, make-up as well as the other person's. You know the plans you have for us and our potential spouse. Give us the patience and wisdom to seek your direction for us.
No comments:
Post a Comment