Recently, a Facebook memory popped up and caught my eye. It was of me wearing a hat and jersey representing that NFL team in Dallas. Now, that's not so unusual for people who live in South Texas. But it certainly is for me. So, there must have been something going on.
When people surprise you, it's normal to take a second and ask what happened. Why this sudden change?
Jacob's name means "heel-grabber," "deceiver," or "supplanter." Up to this point in Genesis, he's lived up to it. He grabbed Esau's heel at birth, grasped his brother's birthright, and schemed his way into Isaac's blessing. Jacob always seemed to be reaching for what isn't his.
Then Jacob comes to a well.
In Scripture, wells are often places where God changes stories. Abraham's servant found Rebekah at a well. Moses met Zipporah at a well. Wells are often places of encounter, providence, and new beginnings.
When Jacob arrives, there's a huge stone covering the well's opening. Normally, because of its size, several shepherds moved it together. Now, it's left for our reflection, but for some reason Jacob rolls it away himself for Rachel's flock.
At first, it feels like the same old Jacob. He's always taking hold of something. This time, he isn't grabbing a blessing for himself. He's removing an obstacle for someone else.
God’s transforming work within us can sometimes surprise others. Even ourselves! God redeems our personalities and all those things about us that maybe we aren't so proud of. With God, selfish determination can become faithful perseverance. Manipulative intentions can turn into compassion. Hands that once grabbed can learn to serve.
God does not waste what God created in us. As we learn to see God's image within us more and more, even our greatest weaknesses become instruments of God's grace.
Jacob is still Jacob. But maybe by moving that stone, God was actually moving him.
Stay blessed...john
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