Have you ever felt stuck in a place that you know God is calling you out of? After twenty years, Jacob knows he has to leave. So he calls his two wives to meet him in the fields. This discussion must not be overheard. The season of their life with their husband, Jacob, serving their father, was well and truly coming to an end. There are moments when we should absolutely not linger a moment more. Knowing that God is with you is all that matters.
4 So Jacob sent word to Rachel and Leah to come out to the fields where his flocks were. 5 He said to them, “I see that your father’s attitude toward me is not what it was before, but the God of my father has been with me. 6 You know that I’ve worked for your father with all my strength, 7 yet your father has cheated me by changing my wages ten times. However, God has not allowed him to harm me. 8 If he said, ‘The speckled ones will be your wages,’ then all the flocks gave birth to speckled young; and if he said, ‘The streaked ones will be your wages,’ then all the flocks bore streaked young. 9 So God has taken away your father’s livestock and has given them to me. 10 “In breeding season I once had a dream in which I looked up and saw that the male goats mating with the flock were streaked, speckled or spotted. 11 The angel of God said to me in the dream, ‘Jacob.’ I answered, ‘Here I am.’ 12 And he said, ‘Look up and see that all the male goats mating with the flock are streaked, speckled or spotted, for I have seen all that Laban has been doing to you. 13 I am the God of Bethel, where you anointed a pillar and where you made a vow to me. Now leave this land at once and go back to your native land.’” 14 Then Rachel and Leah replied, “Do we still have any share in the inheritance of our father’s estate? 15 Does he not regard us as foreigners? Not only has he sold us, but he has used up what was paid for us. 16 Surely all the wealth that God took away from our father belongs to us and our children. So do whatever God has told you.” 17 Then Jacob put his children and his wives on camels, 18 and he drove all his livestock ahead of him, along with all the goods he had accumulated in Paddan Aram,to go to his father Isaac in the land of Canaan.” (Genesis 31:4-18)
May we, like Jacob, be attentive and courageous enough to notice when a season has ended.
- God’s presence doesn’t need a pleasant environment
God had been with Jacob through every shift in wages, every manipulation, and He was with him during this hostility despite his faithfulness to Laban. Where you are is not always where you are meant to remain. But God is faithful in every location.
- God speaks before He sends
Jacob received a dream, a confirmation, a divine “I have seen.” God does not typically ask us to move in total silence. He prepares the heart before He moves the feet. If you are waiting for clarity, it is right to wait and equally right to stay attentive.
- Our testimonies are for sharing
Jacob told his story to his wives. He didn’t carry it alone. The community of faith is strengthened when we rehearse what God has done, the hardships, the injustices, and the faithfulness of God through them.
- The people around you matter
Rachel and Leah’s response made Jacob’s obedience possible in practical terms. Who are the people in your life who will say, “Do whatever God has told you”? Those people are a gift. Treasure them. Be that person for others.
- Going home to the promise is always worth it
The road to Canaan was not without danger. Laban would pursue, but Esau was still ahead. But the direction was right. Obedience rarely removes all obstacles. It simply ensures you are walking in the right direction when you face them.
When the season ends, the story doesn’t.
Jacob left with everything he had come with, and far more than he had arrived with. He left because God said go, and he had learned, through long experience, that God could be trusted.
The same invitation is given to us.
Not every move is geographical. But every one of us will face a moment when the old season has clearly closed. The God of Bethel, who met Jacob at a stone pillar with nothing but a dream and a promise, is the same God who calls you forward now. He has seen what you have been through. He has not been absent during the difficult years. So when He says go, go.
Missions Paul 