Narrative Lectionary Key Verse for Today
“So Jacob went in to Rachel also, and he loved Rachel more than Leah. He served Laban for another seven years. When the Lord saw that Leah was unloved, he opened her womb; but Rachel was barren.”
NL Daily Devotion for Friday, October 1, 2021
by R. M. Fergus, Clergy Stuff
In the age of the patriarchs, a woman’s value was based solely on her ability to produce sons. So let’s just set aside all the myriad things that are so, so wrong about that, and look instead at God’s deep love for Leah. Leah, the weak-eyed sister, the older, unwanted, unloved sister who had no say in her marriage to Jacob, and yet there she was. God heard her pain, and God lifted her up, declaring her to be of great value in a way that made sense to Leah.
How many of us today measure our value in terms other people set? How often do we find ourselves feeling unwanted, unloved, discontented because we don’t live up to some societal ideal—our physical appearance, our financial position, our IQ or level of education, our popularity. Know that God sees you, hears you, loves you, and declares that you are of immeasurably great value exactly as and who you are, a beloved child of God.
Do I feel that I am valuable? How do I show that I value myself?