{"id":15958,"date":"2021-05-31T22:00:27","date_gmt":"2021-06-01T05:00:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/genesis_24_1-14-copy\/"},"modified":"2021-05-30T14:22:38","modified_gmt":"2021-05-30T21:22:38","slug":"genesis_24_15-33","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/genesis_24_15-33\/","title":{"rendered":"Serve with Excellence"},"content":{"rendered":"

Genesis 24:15-33\u00a0Click here for Bible Verses<\/a><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Hi GAMErs,<\/p>\n

Today\u2019s passage is Genesis 24:15-33.\u00a0\u00a0Let\u2019s go!<\/p>\n

Genesis 24:15-17 (NIV)<\/em><\/strong>
\n15\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0Before he had finished praying, Rebekah came out with her jar on her shoulder. She was the daughter of Bethuel son of Milcah, who was the wife of Abraham’s brother Nahor.
\n16\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0The girl was very beautiful, a virgin; no man had ever lain with her. She went down to the spring, filled her jar and came up again.
\n17\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0The servant hurried to meet her and said, “Please give me a little water from your jar.”<\/em><\/p>\n

On verses 15-17:\u00a0\u00a0Just as God brought Rebekah to Abraham\u2019s servant even before Abraham\u2019s servant finished praying,\u00a0God knows your need even before you express it<\/strong>.\u00a0\u00a0So why ask God if He already knows what we need?\u00a0\u00a0Even though He already knows what we need, we ask God because asking is part of growing in our relationship with God, learning to rely on Him and experiencing the power of faith.<\/strong>\u00a0\u00a0Faith is like a muscle that grows with use.\u00a0\u00a0So use your faith muscles and ask God for what you need.<\/p>\n

Genesis 24:18-20 (NIV)<\/em><\/strong>
\n18\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0“Drink, my lord,” she said, and quickly lowered the jar to her hands and gave him a drink.
\n19\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0After she had given him a drink, she said, “I’ll draw water for your camels too, until they have finished drinking.”
\n20\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0So she quickly emptied her jar into the trough, ran back to the well to draw more water, and drew enough for all his camels.<\/em><\/p>\n

On verses 18-20:\u00a0\u00a0Watching the way Rebekah served Abraham\u2019s servant here reminds me of the way Abraham served his three visitors in Genesis 18.\u00a0\u00a0Like Abraham in Genesis 18, Rebekah hurried to serve (as suggested by the words \u201cquickly\u201d (v18, 20) and she \u201cran\u201d (v20)).\u00a0\u00a0Rebekah gave her best when serving.\u00a0\u00a0She was very polite and respectful.\u00a0\u00a0She showed an excellent work ethic.\u00a0\u00a0Rebekah didn\u2019t have a team to help her, but unbeknownst to her she was about to meet her life partner.\u00a0\u00a0As Rebekah served with excellence, little did she know that her destiny was waiting.<\/p>\n

What can we learn from this?\u00a0\u00a0God loves to honour, use and bless people who serve with humility and excellence.\u00a0\u00a0So serve God and others with excellence and consistency, knowing that your promotion and destiny are waiting around the corner.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Genesis 24:21 (NIV)<\/em><\/strong>
\n21\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0Without saying a word, the man watched her closely to learn whether or not the\u00a0LORD\u00a0had made his journey successful.<\/em><\/p>\n

On verse 21:\u00a0\u00a0Even though the prayer Abraham\u2019s servant prayed was that he would find someone who would offer to serve him and his camels, Abraham\u2019s servant didn\u2019t rush into things the moment he saw Rebekah.\u00a0\u00a0Rather he \u201cwatched her closely to learn whether or not the Lord had made his journey successful\u201d.\u00a0\u00a0In particular Abraham\u2019s servant watched to see if Rebekah was a woman of her word: did she keep her promise?\u00a0\u00a0Was she diligent and hard working?<\/p>\n

What can we learn from this?\u00a0\u00a0Sometimes the best thing you can do is just watch and learn: don\u2019t make any rash decisions, keep your mouth shut, keep your eyes and ears open, and learn as much as you can about the person and the situation before making any decisions.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Genesis 24:22-27 (NIV)<\/em><\/strong>
\n22\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0When the camels had finished drinking, the man took out a gold nose ring weighing a beka and two gold bracelets weighing ten shekels.
\n23\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0Then he asked, “Whose daughter are you? Please tell me, is there room in your father’s house for us to spend the night?”
\n24\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0She answered him, “I am the daughter of Bethuel, the son that Milcah bore to Nahor.”
\n25\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0And she added, “We have plenty of straw and fodder, as well as room for you to spend the night.”
\n26\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0Then the man bowed down and worshiped the\u00a0LORD,
\n27\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0saying, “Praise be to the\u00a0LORD, the God of my master Abraham, who has not abandoned his kindness and faithfulness to my master. As for me, the\u00a0LORD\u00a0has led me on the journey to the house of my master’s relatives.”<\/em><\/p>\n

On verses 22-27:\u00a0\u00a0I love the response of Abraham\u2019s servant upon hearing that Rebekah was a relative of Abraham\u2019s family.\u00a0\u00a0He didn\u2019t take all the credit and say, \u201cLook how smart I am!\u00a0\u00a0My master Abraham\u2019s so lucky to have me.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0No, he gave all the credit and praise to God (v27).\u00a0\u00a0Likewise,\u00a0when you experience success, give God the glory and credit He is due<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Genesis 24:28-33 (NIV)<\/em><\/strong>
\n28\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0The girl ran and told her mother’s household about these things.
\n29\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0Now Rebekah had a brother named Laban, and he hurried out to the man at the spring.
\n30\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0As soon as he had seen the nose ring, and the bracelets on his sister’s arms, and had heard Rebekah tell what the man said to her, he went out to the man and found him standing by the camels near the spring.
\n31\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0“Come, you who are blessed by the\u00a0LORD,” he said. “Why are you standing out here? I have prepared the house and a place for the camels.”
\n32\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0So the man went to the house, and the camels were unloaded. Straw and fodder were brought for the camels, and water for him and his men to wash their feet.<\/em>
\n33\u00a0<\/sup>\u00a0Then food was set before him, but he said, “I will not eat until I have told you what I have to say.” “Then tell us,” [Laban] said.<\/em><\/p>\n

On verses 28-33:\u00a0\u00a0Abraham\u2019s servant meets Rebekah\u2019s brother Laban, whom we will get to know in later chapters of Genesis.\u00a0\u00a0Laban welcomes Abraham\u2019s servant into their home, but Abraham\u2019s servant is so set on completing his mission that he refuses to eat before he talks about the business he came to do (v33).<\/p>\n

Though we never learn his name, Abraham\u2019s servant is one of the unsung heroes of the Bible.\u00a0\u00a0His diligence reminds me of Jesus, who diligently completed the mission his Father sent him to do.\u00a0\u00a0Likewise,\u00a0may we be diligent in our responsibilities, doing our best in the work we are called to do<\/strong>.\u00a0\u00a0As Colossians 3:23-24 says,\u00a0\u201c<\/sup>Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.\u201d<\/p>\n

Heavenly Father, may I be diligent like Abraham\u2019s servant, faithfully fulfilling the assignment You have given me on this earth.\u00a0\u00a0Like Rebekah, may I serve with humility and excellence, knowing that my promotion and destiny are just around the corner.\u00a0\u00a0In Jesus\u2019 name, AMEN!<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div><\/section><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Hi GAMErs,<\/p>\n

Today\u2019s passage is Genesis 24:15-33.\u00a0\u00a0Let\u2019s go!<\/p>\n

Genesis 24:15-17 (NIV)
\n15\u00a0\u00a0Before he had finished praying, Rebekah came out with her jar on her shoulder. She was the daughter of Bethuel son of Milcah, who was the wife of Abraham’s brother Nahor.
\n16\u00a0\u00a0The girl was very beautiful, a virgin; no man had ever lain with her. She went down to the spring, filled her jar and came up again.
\n17\u00a0\u00a0The servant hurried to meet her and said, “Please give me a little water from your jar.”<\/p>\n

On verses 15-17:\u00a0\u00a0Just as God brought Rebekah to Abraham\u2019s servant even before Abraham\u2019s servant finished praying,\u00a0God knows your need even before you express it.\u00a0\u00a0So why ask God if He already knows what we need?\u00a0\u00a0Even though He already knows what we need, we ask God because asking is part of growing in our relationship with God, learning to rely on Him and experiencing the power of faith.\u00a0\u00a0Faith is like a muscle that grows with use.\u00a0\u00a0So use your faith muscles and ask God for what you need.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":15955,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-15958","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-gametime-sharing"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15958","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=15958"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15958\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":15959,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15958\/revisions\/15959"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/15955"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15958"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=15958"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ocbf.ca\/2019\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=15958"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}