plans

Genesis 27 tells the story of how Rebekah and Jacob deceived Isaac to get the blessing he intended to give Esau.  This story really spoke to me this week.  Rebekah knew what God had promised.  He  had told her back when she was pregnant:

“Two nations are in your womb,
and two peoples from within you will be separated;
one people will be stronger than the other,
and the older will serve the younger.” (Genesis 25:23)

She knew all this and yet  as she heard her husband plotting to try and change this, she let fear creep in.  That fear led her to take matters into her own hands.  She and Jacob tricked Isaac and he gave the blessing to Jacob instead.
Rebekah got what she wanted.  Rebekah got what she knew God had intended but what did she miss out on? What consequences did she have to endure because of her deceit? God would have followed through on His promise - He ALWAYS does.  He didn't need Rebekah's help.
How many times have I let fear cause me to take matters into my own hands?  I know what God has promised me.  Yet, I feel like He needs my help when it doesn't look like things are moving in that direction.  Isn't that ridiculous?  As I read it back to myself, it makes me laugh out loud.  This is the same God who spoke the world into being, the same God who parted the Red Sea so the Israelites could cross over on dry ground, the same God who empowered David to take down Goliath with a single stone, the same God who brought my fiance' (now my husband) back to me when I thought our relationship had been irretrievably broken, the same God who healed my daughter when she fell on her head and was knocked unconscious, the same God who has guided us through 2 cross country moves, the same God who saw a tired, confused, cynical, depressed and abandoned 19 year old girl and redeemed her life.  That is a God who certainly does not need my help.
I wonder how God would have caused Jacob to receive the blessing had Rebekah not stepped in.  What would she have seen?  How would her faith have grown because of how she saw God work out His plan, His good and perfect plan?
My challenge right now is to learn from Rebekah's mistake and try not to let that fear overwhelm me to the point of trying to take matters into my own hands.  I want to be excited about the things God is going to do and to be completely trusting of His will.  I don't want to miss out on the many blessings along the way and I certainly don't want to have to suffer the consequences of my bad behavior.
I want God to get all the glory for the amazing God He is.  I want to stand in awe on the other side of the road because I can't believe how I got there.