Today’s AMI QT Devotional is provided by Jennifer Kim. Jennifer, a graduate of Boston University, spent a year in Shanghai as one-year intern from 2013-14. She is currently serving as a staff at Catalyst Agape Church (New Jersey), while attending Alliance Theological Seminary.
Devotional Thoughts for Today
The Cost of Ungodly Gain
Genesis 27:41-45
So Esau bore a grudge against Jacob because of the blessing with which his father had blessed him; and Esau said to himself, “The days of mourning for my father are near; then I will kill my brother Jacob.” 42 Now when the words of her elder son Esau were reported to Rebekah, she sent and called her younger son Jacob, and said to him, “Behold your brother Esau is consoling himself concerning you by planning to kill you. 43 Now therefore, my son, obey my voice, and arise, flee to Haran, to my brother Laban! 44 Stay with him a few days, until your brother’s fury subsides, 45 until your brother’s anger against you subsides and he forgets what you did to him. Then I will send and get you from there. Why should I be bereaved of you both in one day?”
I have a vivid memory of when I was six years old, being filled with so much pain and confusion as I saw my dad leave on a cab headed to the airport. My parents had made the decision to open up a new branch of their business in Brazil in hopes of fulfilling the American dream for their kids, while my mom continued to run their business in New York and taking care of my ten-year-old brother and myself. Looking back, my parents could never have imagined the cost of their decision: a family divided for over two decades with consequences that our family is still overcoming.
Today’s passage is no different: Rebekah’s desire to see her son Jacob receive the blessing from Isaac cost her the unity of her family and much more. Esau plots to kill Jacob for stealing Isaac’s blessing, and Rebekah has no choice but to send Jacob away to spare his life. In the next five chapters, we read Jacob’s story of his new wives (Gn. 29), the birth of his sons (Gn. 30:1-24), the prosperity Jacob gains (Gn. 30:25-43), and the ultimate reunion with Esau (Gn. 32-33). Commentaries conclude that period spanned over twenty years, and sometime during this period, Rebekah died without ever seeing her son Jacob again. While Rebekah probably had the best of intentions for Jacob, the consequences of her sins led to division and strife—and ultimately, she never got to see her son again.
What we can learn from this story is that good intentions will always fall short—if our desires are for ungodly personal gain. While my parents simply wanted the best for our family—the same way Rebekah wanted the best for Jacob—their desires were of worldly blessings that came at a cost. We must recognize that true blessings come when we align ourselves to the will of God, for His ways are greater than our ways. While I am happy to share that my dad permanently moved back home to the United States in 2016, it cost my family nineteen years of missed birthdays, holidays, and special events. But most of all, it cost us our family bond, for we had to start from scratch to rebuild the divided relationships of our family, due to the separation that was done all in the name of good intentions.
Today, I want to challenge us to examine any area of our lives in which we are working hard towards something, and ask ourselves whether we are pursuing that to honor the Lord or with simply good intentions, regardless of the cost. May we be people who seek God’s ways above our personal desires, so that we may fall in alignment to God’s blessings in our lives.
Prayer: God, I thank You that Your ways are always good. Forgive me for the times that I have not pursued Your plans and desires in my life. Help me to trust that Your ways lead to life, and that I may walk in alignment with Your will for my life. Amen.
Bible Reading for Today: Jeremiah 45
Lunch Break Study
Read Genesis 32:24-29: Then Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him until daybreak. 25 When he saw that he had not prevailed against him, he touched the socket of his thigh; so the socket of Jacob’s thigh was dislocated while he wrestled with him. 26 Then he said, “Let me go, for the dawn is breaking.” But he said, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.” 27 So he said to him, “What is your name?” And he said, “Jacob.” 28 He said, “Your name shall no longer be Jacob, but Israel; for you have striven with God and with men and have prevailed.”
Questions to Consider
- Amidst all the deceiving that Jacob performed throughout his life, why did God bless Jacob?
- Why did God give Jacob a new name?
- In what area do you need to wrestle with God to overcome certain struggles, so that God may bless you?
Notes
- Jacob’s persistence and desire to be blessed by God caused Him to bless Jacob, regardless of his past.
- So that he would no longer be identified as a deceiver but as one who has prevailed.
- Personal response.
Evening Reflection
Take time to reflect on your day to examine whether you may have operated in ways that was out of alignment with God’s ways. Maybe you found yourself working for personal gain at work or school; or maybe you did something in the name of good intentions without thinking about the cost. Lift these areas to the Lord and wrestle with God to overcome your temptations so that God may bless you!
The AMI QT Devotional for today is written by Pastor Andrew Kim at Tapestry Church. Andrew is currently studying (M.Div.) at Fuller Theological Seminary. He and Jessie were married in 2014.
In today’s passage, we see the beginning of a story marked by deception and lies. As Isaac senses the nearness of his own death (although he would live for another 30-40 years), he feels the need to finish up some family business before he passes. However, the fact that the author of Genesis points out Jacob’s blindness is a hint on how the rest of the story will unfold. He plans on passing down the patriarchal blessing to Esau in exchange for a delicious meal. This seems to signify two things: First, it is comical in one sense to exchange the father’s blessing for a single meal. It seems as though Isaac does not understand the value of what he is passing on. Second, Isaac is apparently blind to the fact that Esau had sold his birthright to Jacob in exchange for a meal. The irony of this situation is easily seen. And this is only the beginning of a chapter which exposes the brokenness of all the characters involved.
The AMI QT Devotionals from December 4-10 are written by Andy Kim. Andy, a graduate of Northwestern University and Fuller Theological Seminary (M.Div.) currently serves as a staff at Radiance Christian Church in San Francisco. And this past November Andy got married… to Jane. Congratulations.
After a few years of working in corporate America, I felt the Lord calling me to pursue full-time ministry. The conversation I had with my boss would be one to remember. To provide some context, my boss was a devout Hindu who knew I was a Christian—way too devoted to church work. That day, I stepped into her office and gave her my resignation, explaining that I wanted to pursue full- time ministry. After much disbelief and negotiation, she allowed me to work on a flex schedule that gave me enough time to focus on ministry. But more than these benefits, it was her passing remark that I cherished: She said, “Andrew, you put out good work. But more than that, I feel like having you on my team means I have God on my team.” She joked saying that she wanted all the extra good karma possible, but even if it was a joke it meant everything to me.
Moving is stressful because it means finding a place to live in a crazy housing market, adjusting to different cultures, and embracing a new community. In the midst of this chaos, what we deem as non-negotiable keeps us sane: For some it’s an in-unit washer/dryer; the school district; bathroom water pressure; the type of people; nearby friends; etc. The general rule of thumb is that if you can secure what is non-negotiable to you, then you should sign the papers—or else you might lose it. And in the Mosaic period, the most important non-negotiable was a source of water.
Like father, like son—or in the case of my friend, like father, like daughter. To give context, my friend is a 250-pound man who was known to be like a rock—emotionless and unmovable. That was until his daughter came into the picture and found himself crying. Surprisingly, it was not when she was born, but it was the first time she had done something bad. What made him cry was the fact that he saw his own bad habits in his precious little baby daughter. He couldn’t believe how such an innocent child could follow after his own selfishness. Even when he was disciplining her, he felt like he was disciplining an innocent baby, a victim of his own selfishness.
Over the past decade, millennials have gotten a bad reputation, especially from the previous generations. Time magazine writer John Stein describes the stigma of the millennials as the “ME, ME, ME” generation. While previous generations have been built on hard work and sacrifice for the next, millennials expect to simply ride on their coat tails. Stein writes that the consequences are feelings of entitlement and laziness. As a millennial, I feel that these generalizations may be debatable, but we can all agree that there is no such thing as a free ride in our world today.
Over Thanksgiving, we laughed over past memories of my silly childhood and one stood out in particular. My mom would take me to prayer meetings and leave me in the back with the other kids to run around. In one service, the pastor went around praying and laying hands on the heads of the people. The next morning while my mom was praying, she suddenly felt a hand on her head. She had thought it was Jesus! But when she looked up, she was shocked to see her four-year-old son passionately jerking her head yelling gibberish! For many of us, we’ve learned to pray ever since we were young. But over time, such learned prayers can become repetitive and mundane. The danger is that these once faith-driven prayers can become mere afterthoughts.
Every year, America witnesses the inner savage in all humans—we call it Black Friday shopping. In the past, shoppers have actually pulled out guns but people still refused to let go of televisions and computers even as they were getting shot at. This year, a shopper threw a shoe at a poor innocent baby while trying to beat the rush. Suffice it to say, we can all agree that Black Friday shopping has taken over and destroyed the meaning of Thanksgiving. Rather than celebrating with families and friends and thinking of the years’ past blessings, people sit in tents waiting in lines, fighting one another. Over what? Just to save some money on items that will soon be outdated.
The AMI QT Devotionals from December 4-10 are written by Andy Kim. Andy, a graduate of Northwestern University and Fuller Theological Seminary (M.Div.) currently serves as a staff at Radiance Christian Church in San Francisco. And this past November Andy got married . . . to Jane. Congratulations.
We have all given up something to be where we are today. For the sake of your career, think about all the fun you gave up with countless hours for that next promotion; for your family, all the sacrifices you made for your kids; for your health, all the sugary carbs with depressing diets and workouts. We call these “opportunity cost”: simply put, it is to give up something for something else usually of greater value.
The AMI QT Devotionals for November 27 to December 3 are written by David Son, who serves as the college pastor at Symphony Church in Boston. David, a graduate of UC Berkeley (B.S.) and Gordon-Conwell Seminary (M.Div.), is married to Grace, who teaches at a public school.
In order to become a US Navy SEAL, you need to be 28 years or younger, have near perfect vision, be able to run 1.5 miles in 9-10 minutes or less, do 100+ pushups in 2 minutes, 100+ sit-ups in 2 minutes, and swim 500 yards (5 football fields) in less than 8 minutes. And those are just some of the physical requirements; there is a whole lot more testing that you have to pass in order to potentially become a Navy SEAL. They are one of the elite forces in the United States military, and so their selection process is very stringent. Only the cream of the crop should even think about applying. But those who go on to become SEALs are some of the most honored, respected, and saluted service-men in our nation.