Our Father in heaven wants very much to be an active Father in our lives.

However, He will not control us as though we are puppets.
We hope that the meditations will encourage you to deepen your bonds with Him in this most vital relationship of our lives.

13 - A Father like God
Genesis 35
16. Leaving Bethel, (Jacob) and his household traveled on toward Ephrath (Bethlehem). But Rachel's pains of childbirth began while they were still a long way away.
17. After a very hard delivery, the midwife finally exclaimed, "Wonderful - another boy!"
18. And with Rachel's last breath (for she died) she named him "Ben-oni" ("Son of my sorrow"); but his father called him "Benjamin" ("Son of my right hand").
NKJV

Today let us examine what Jacob, as a father, did in a difficult situation.

Rachel was the wife he had loved from the first day he saw her.
Now, many years later, she was dying in child-birth.
Jacob was heart-broken.

He saw her experience a very hard delivery at the end of which she was so depressed and broken that she called the baby Son-of-my-Sorrow.

But when Jacob heard this, he immediately rose up out of his own grief and changed the child's name to Son-of-my-right-hand.

Why did he do this?

Jacob understood the principle that the words of a parent shape the outcome of the life of a child.
For example, when parents make the mistake of calling a child stupid, a blight of stupidity seems to follow that child around after that.

Jacob decided that no child of his was going to be blighted by being named a son of sorrow.
So he took the right that was his as a father and changed the child's name and thus changed his future.

Out of the descendants of Benjamin came the first king of Israel, Saul. This probably would not have happened if Saul's ancestor Benjamin had instead kept the name Ben-oni!

As parents, let us always bless and not blight our children with our words.

Prayer:
Father, today make me a blessing.
Help me to speak only helpful words especially to those in my own family.
Today I choose to bless those You bring me into contact with,
in Jesus' name,
Amen.

See you tomorrow, God willing,
when you'll find a new thought here to challenge you!
Meanwhile, have a great day walking with the Lord!