Trusting God When Nothing Seems to be Happening

 22 Then God remembered Rachel; he listened to her and enabled her to conceive. 23 She became pregnant and gave birth to a son and said, "God has taken away my disgrace." 24 She named him Joseph,[a] and said, "May the Lord add to me another son" (Genesis 30:22-24).

I can relate to what Rachel is experiencing. Sometimes, it seems like everyone else is experiencing divine intervention in their lives, and it can be disheartening when we don't see the same for ourselves. But I think trusting in God is something we must work at and develop over time. It's about learning more about God's character and ways and building a relationship with Him rather than expecting immediate results from our prayers. It's a process, but the more we seek Him, the more we will find Him working in our lives in ways we may not have expected.

Trusting God when nothing seems to be happening is difficult. More significant still is not letting what we see God doing in the lives of others lead us to take matters into our own hands. We would do well to remember God's timetable does not equal ours. We live in a world where, as the slogan says, I want it now, not tomorrow. Patience is certainly not a virtue many people ascribe to. I understand it's a sad story of sibling rivalry and the desire for motherhood. 

It must have been difficult for Rachel to watch her sister Leah have child after child while she remained barren. Unfortunately, in her jealousy, Rachel decided to give her servant to Jacob to conceive a child, which ultimately caused much adversity. 

Resist the temptation to think God has forgotten about you. Have patience and courage to wait for God to move on your behalf.

It's a reminder of the importance of patience and the dangers of succumbing to envy and competitiveness. 

"God heard Rachel's prayers, and He blessed her with the ability to conceive. She gave birth to a son and joyfully declared that God had removed her shame. She named the child Joseph, meaning 'may he add,' expressing her hope for another son to be added to her family by the Lord."

The lesson learned is that we can't earn God's love through deception and trickery but through what is true and correct.

Question: which one do you identify with, Leah or Rachel? Please go and read their story in its fullness before you answer.

Then God Remembered Rachel,

Minister Sylvia Joyner