Guidance through Signs
Our reading for Tuesday, January 8, 2013: Genesis 23:1-24:67
My Selection: Genesis 24:14
14 Let the young woman to whom I shall say, ‘Please let down your jar that I may drink,’ and who shall say, ‘Drink, and I will water your camels’—let her be the one whom you have appointed for your servant Isaac. By this I shall know that you have shown steadfast love to my master.”
My reflections: Abraham’s servant was commissioned to choose a wife for Isaac and bring her back to him. Am I glad this system was not in place when I was single! Nevertheless, the servant, who showed real trust in God and sought His direction in prayer, asked for a confirming sign from the Lord. This can be a dangerous practice if the sign has nothing to do with the matter being decided. For example, if a young man driving down a road prays that if he should marry a certain person the NEXT traffic light would be green, that sign would have nothing to do with the matter being decided.
In the case of the servant, the sign he requested did relate to the character of the woman for whom he was looking. The sign, if fulfilled, would be a good indicator of the diligence and kindness of the woman. It was fulfilled to the letter and everything else fell into place as well. So Isaac got a wife, Rebekah, and she proved to be faithful.
Looking for guidance through signs is dangerous but as a final confirmation of a decision which is otherwise not prohibited nor mandated by Scripture, it may be used. If it is used it should always have some bearing on the matter in question.
My challenge: Seek to know and do God’s will as revealed in the Bible and confirmed by godly counsel and circumstances. Rarely, if ever, rely on signs.
Our reading for Wednesday, January 9, 2013: Genesis 25:1-26:35