In India, the majority of marriages are arranged. Maybe you are one of those who are anxiously wondering which wife or a husband your parents will get for you. Or you are the one who is reading through those pages in the newspaper or going on the websites where you can find the perfect match for your child. Many put their trust in astrology or in some priest or pastor to help them. But Abraham did it right.
Isaac was born when Abraham was a hundred years old, and his wife Sarah was ninety. “Impossible!” you might say like Sarah thought. But God reminded her that nothing is impossible with God. And now Abraham was very old, and it was time for Isaac to marry. He could not go and look for a bride for his son, but through a lifetime of dependence on God and seeing God work, he trusted God for one last time.
Abraham sent his servant with the command to go and find a wife for Isaac from his own clan and trusted that God will provide. The servant, who must have seen his master’s faith, imitated it and believed God as he went.
In the book of Genesis chapter 24, we read the story of Abrahams faith. He said to his servant:
“The Lord, before whom I have walked faithfully, will send his angel with you and make your journey a success, so that you can get a wife for my son from my own clan and from my father’s family.”
He went to the village where his master came from and asked God for a sign. He sat down outside the village at the well and asked God to let it be that if he asks a girl to give him water and she responds by being willing and also waters the camels, then that is the bride that God wants for Isaac.
He was still praying when Rebekah came along and did exactly that. She ran around to serve the camels. She was kind. She was also beautiful. The servant then gave her presents of gold and asked who her father was and if he could stay in their home that night. She ran home to tell her family. It turned out that she was from Abraham’s family and indeed the bride that God chose for Isaac and both her family and she agreed.
Then the man bowed down and worshiped the Lord, saying, “Praise be to the Lord, the God of my master Abraham, who has not abandoned his kindness and faithfulness to my master. As for me, the Lord has led me on the journey to the house of my master’s relatives.”
I still have a bit of time (I hope!) but have started asking the Lord Jesus to provide the spouses of his choice for my daughters and my son. I trust Him for this significant decision. What about you? Shouldn’t you also have faith in Him for this and other choices in your life? I know that He cares for us and will help when we trust Him for every big and small aspect of our lives.
It is the rainy season. Here are a few recent pictures.
Running with a Friend 