Unlovely

January 15

Genesis 29-30

Psalm 9:13-20

Proverbs 2:11-15

Matthew 10:21-42

Unlovely

“Leah conceived, gave birth to a son, and named him Reuben, for she said, ‘The Lord has seen my affliction; surely my husband will love me now. She conceived again, gave birth to a son, and said, ‘The Lord heard that I am unloved and has given me this son also.’ So she named him Simeon. Genesis 29:32-33 HCSB

It breaks my heart to read this passage and hear the pain and heartache in Leah’s voice. Her father tricked Jacob into marrying her when he did not love her. He loved her sister, Rachel. She was obviously very well aware of his feelings toward her sister. Jacob had been living in their home for seven years and working to earn the right to marry Rachel. Then when the time came, instead of giving Rachel to him, their father gave him Leah instead. This must have been horrible for all of them. Rachel thought she was going to be married to the man she loved. She was excited and waited for her wedding with great anticipation. Then her father betrayed her and gave her sister what she had longed for. Leah probably wasn’t any happier about the situation. She deserved a man who loved her and would cherish her, not one that wished he was with her sister. Talk about sibling rivalry. I’ve made mistakes as a parent, but this was foolish. You can’t really blame Jacob either. This was not what he had agreed to do. He didn’t love Leah. He loved Rachel and had worked long and hard for the right to marry her. He was tricked into marrying Leah. He reluctantly agreed, but wasn’t happy about it.

Leah felt unloved. She tried desperately to get Jacob to love her by giving him children. Each time she thought, “Surely he will love me now.” And each time she was disappointed. She based her worth and dignity on what other people thought of her and how they valued her. God loved Leah and blessed her greatly with six sons and a daughter. He made her the mother of half of the children of Israel, his beloved people. She has a very special place in history and her Heavenly Father loved her very much. We may find ourselves in an unfair situation. We did nothing to get there and can do nothing to get out of it. It is what it is. We may feel unloved and unwanted. But we are not unloved. Our Heavenly Father loves us. He may not remove us from the situation, but He will take care of us, comfort us, provide for us and will accomplish his purposes in and through us. Our value is not based on what other people think of us. Our value is found in who we are in Christ. The Creator of the universe loves us and cares for us. We are of great value, and we are loved more than we can even imagine.