I had been reading Frank Dimazio`s Delays All Leaders Must Contend With and I loved this illustration about Leah and Rachel. As we all know, Leah was the least loved of the two. Jacob was so much in love with Rachel because she was more beautiful and attractive, while Leah was kindda common and with this eyesight problem. And since Leah was more of Jacob`s apple of the eye, Leah was left in sorrow. Imagine your husband not really liking you so much. I mean, for a girl that must be sooooo heartbreaking. I could imagine Leah weeping and crying at night. And of course, the Lord saw Leah`s pain and opened her womb and gave birth to four sons.

Now, the beautiful Rachel remained childless—while Leah gives birth to baby after a baby--and the lady got so envious of her sister that she told Jacob “Give me a child, or I`ll die!”.

Frank then continues about Leah, perhaps, in her younger years must have been haughty. Well, she was beautiful and favored by Jacob. Deeply loved and thought of as precious. And perhaps, God gave her children after some delay because He wants to refine her character and teach her all these important lessons which she have learned so well. In the end of their story, Rachel gives birth to children and recognizes that her giving birth is not of her own, but is a gift from God, out the power of God.

I just looked into my own life and searched about areas where I thought that maybe I can get something or get into something with things or qualities that I have in myself. Gifts. Talents. Potential. And like Rachel, who couldn`t get away with her bareness using her beauty, I learned that I cannot manipulate or turn my future around with my own talents or abilities. My future is in the hands of God. And waiting, depending, and trusting on Him is the ultimate thing that I can do in this lifetime. My life is all about Him. My future all about Him. And I could have all these gifts, and people could have all these beauty and talent. But we are all God`s sovereignty. We are not God. We can rebel and try to do things our way, but in the end it will be worthless. God will still do the things He promised, BUT IN HIS OWN WAY. It is God who ordains and does things according to His will.

You know, surrender is a hard thing to do. But that is only if you don`t know the God you are trusting. He is faithful and good. And more than just to bless us, He desires to sanctify and purge us from all these character flaws that we have. And what He desires so much is for us to entrust to Him our lives and depend on Him for our today and tomorrow, to rejoice because we have Him, to forget about our worries because He is enough.

God intended to give Rachel children, but in His own timing. The same way, God intends to bless us and bring us to the next level of our relationship with Him. But we should know that it`s not about us. It is never about our strength, or our wits, or our own understanding.

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding. In all of your ways, acknowledge Him and He shall direct you paths.”

Like Rachel, she was beautiful and she`s got everything. But in the end, having a baby is all up to God and she couldn`t do it her way.

From now on, I`m gonna trust God and let Him lead me. I`m gonna stop all these things that I`ve been thinking which actually tires me. It`s tiring to have to run your life on your own when you really wouln`t need to. And my life is not my own anyway. It`s His and I`ll just follow Him and obey.

He is sovereign. And He keeps promises. I just have to trust Him for the timing, and the way it`s gonna happen, and for everything. You should trust Him too.