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Today’s reading: Genesis 28:10-22
When I think of life, I think of Jacob’s staircase leading up to God. In our lives, we may think that we can run away from our problems and our lives. After Jacob receives the blessing from Isaac, he goes into the unknown, not knowing what his future will be. Will his brother Esau run after him to try and kill him after he had deceived him of his birthright? Jacob goes deep into the darkness not knowing what his future will be.
Jacob finds a spot, puts a rock beneath his head, and then, has a dream. In the dream, he sees God at the top of a staircase, and angels ascending and descending from heaven to earth. He then receives the promise from God that he will be blessed and that God will provide him with Abraham’s promise that his offspring would bless the world, and that he also would be provided with his daily needs.
Jacob makes a vow that if God will provide him with his daily needs that the Lord will be his God.
Luther reminds us that Jesus explains these verses to Nathanael, showing that it was Jesus who was at the top of the staircase speaking to Jacob (John 1:48-51). God is not only our creator but our sustainer who is with us no matter what we go through. St. John Chrysostom said that the prayer of Jacob reminds us not to pray for riches, but to pray for the basics of life, and the rest will be given.
You may be going through a time when you feel that God has abandoned you while you are trying to decide whether to have an abortion. Like Jacob, you may be wondering what your future will be. You may be wondering how you will pay for the baby. What kind of future will I have if I have this baby? If I have an abortion, I could end all my problems.
If we listen to Jacob’s dream, Scripture can help us. We must remember to have faith that God is our sustainer. God sends angels down from heaven to earth to minister to us. We are never alone. If we pray for God to provide our basic needs, we know that we have a God who will help us to find the resources and the people to help us in our struggle. If we have faith in God’s promises found in deep, daily devotions, we know that God will help us to raise the child. Through the trials and tribulations of raising the child, we may be confident that Jesus and his body, the Church, will never abandon us. Jesus, at the top of the staircase, will help us to find not just life but a more abundant life.
Today’s devotion was written by Rev. Ricky Phillips, Pastor of St. John’s Church of Dry Valley, Winfield, PA, and Mazeppa Union Church, Lewisburg, PA.