seeing_is_believing

							      My family was recently walking down a narrow path at Yosemite National

Park listening to our gregarious Greek guide talk about how frenzied

entrepreneurs, lead by James McCauley, spent over $4,000, (which was quite a

chunk of change back in the 1870's), to hire a team of 9 men that built a trail from

Sentinel Rock ascending over 3,000 feet to its destination at Glacier Point. Glacier

Point offers superb views of Yosemite Valley including vistas of beautiful falls and

granite domes that made Ansel Adams' pictures famous!


      At a loss to remember the Ranger's name who was guiding us down a nearby

path that overlooked the Glacier Point path, I found my soul gripped by stories of

courageous men and women who challenged this treacherous trail, (at a time when

acceptable attire - suits for men, and huge hoop dresses for women - made for a

dauntingly difficult ascent,) just to stay a few nights at the Mountain House hotel.

McCauley's precariously placed palace of panorama in Yosemite mysteriously

burned down in the Yosemite Fire fall of 1963. While McCauley definitely had

plans of profit through the trial leading up to the Mountain House hotel, have you

noticed that the plans we make in this life don't always turn out as hoped for and

may even include a few fires of adversity and subsequent setbacks?
      I am currently hiking through the rugged terrain of life altering decisions and

ruminating over real life issues that include: sorting through the aftermath of a

church plant that broke apart, personal bankruptcy, a struggling business, and

potential homelessness. I have found myself re-evaluating my life's direction of

travel during this "season of struggle." I am not inviting you to my "pitty party" but

I do hope to "strike a cord" that may resonate with other travelers traversing the

trecharious trials life can throw at us. Can you relate to the present difficulties

faced by so many in these challenging times? Have you longed for deliverance or

at least a "rest stop" to re-group and re-evaluate your heart's desires?


      Perhaps you too have longed to step out and see your life, “travel in a

different direction,” on occasion? The thrill of venturing into new territory;

heading for a personal destination to call your own has been sufficient motivation

for many of life’s adventurers.


      For others, however, chasing a changed life is fueled by obvious needs or in

some cases deeper desires. It is the rare soul, however, whom is propelled into

newness of life by a desire to see the One True God fulfill His vision and dreams

for their life. It would make sense that only God could show you how your life

purpose can be birthed from personal pain and how He can use the ugly life

experiences we go through to comfort and council those around you. "He comforts

us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When others are troubled, we will
be able to give them the same comfort God has given us." (2 Corinthians 1:4 NLT)

Have you seen God's hand working in your life in spite of past or present

difficulties or maybe even because of them?

      Jesus said, “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.” But what

does it look like to truly, “See God?” Is it even possible this side of Heaven?

Furthermore, is God still revealing Himself and His character to mere mortals in a

personal way? Perhaps the better question - are we willing to see God in all His

glory, splendor and majesty? Would this God sighting change your direction of

travel? Would it change your life?


       “Blessed are the pure in heart for they shall see God.” Matthew 5:8 When

we uncover the original language behind the word “See,” or Horao, it is apparent

that to "see" God is to become acquainted with Him through experience. How

would your life change for the better as you “See God” and thereby become more

intimately acquainted with Him through your life experiences?


      A “journey into the unknown” accurately frames Jacob’s life experiences

with God. Let’s “travel the road” of his life experiences and watch how Jacob saw

God and was forever changed.


      Many a young person has desperately desired to leave home at some point

and set their sights on a promising future. A future complete with a spacious place,
room to move, develop and explore the meaning of life. Jacob’s motives for

leaving home, however, were fueled by self preservation.


        In the midst of the threat of death, at the hands of his brother Esau, the story

unfolds before us in Genesis 25:27-34.

27   The boys grew up, and Esau became a skillful hunter, a man of the open
country, while Jacob was a quiet man, staying among the tents. 28 Isaac, who
had a taste for wild game, loved Esau, but Rebekah loved Jacob.
29   Once when Jacob was cooking some stew, Esau came in from the open
country, famished. 30 He said to Jacob, "Quick, let me have some of that red
stew! I'm famished!" (That is why he was also called Edom.)
31   Jacob replied, "First sell me your birthright."
32   "Look, I am about to die," Esau said. "What good is the birthright to
me?"
33   But Jacob said, "Swear to me first." So he swore an oath to him, selling
his birthright to Jacob.
34   Then Jacob gave Esau some bread and some lentil stew. He ate and drank,
and then got up and left. So Esau despised his birthright.
        Esau traded his birthright, as the first born son of Isaac, and all the

corresponding blessings, to his brother Jacob for some stew. Jacob was a bit of a

homebody and no doubt learned to cook from his mother Rebekah, who favored

him over his brother Esau. It would be fair to say that Jacob was a, “Mama’s boy”
with a deceitful desire to pursue his best interests at the expense of others. His very

name, Jacob, means trickster or supplanter and he more than lived up to his

reputation!

              After Jacob had lied to his father Isaac three times to secure the

blessings that Esau’s birthright afforded him, Jacob fled from his brother’s death

threat. Traveling alone no doubt gave Jacob time to reflect on his life thus far and

perhaps marvel at the blessings spoken of by his father Isaac in Genesis chapters

27 and 28? Would he meet El Shadai, God Almighty, as his father Isaac had

hoped? Would God Almighty bless him beyond anything that Isaac experienced?

One thing was for sure, change was inevitable. Jacob’s character would be slowly

carved by a “Master Craftsman” and a passionate pursuit would follow. Indeed,

Jacob’s life experiences would be shaped by some “supernatural stops” along the

way!

       Being the escapist that he was, perhaps Jacob’s own self interests of seeking

a wife and discovering uncharted territory of his own pushed him out of his

father’s familiar territory in Beersheeba. I’m sure he was told stories as a child

about how his dad Isaac had experienced God’s goodness in his life by protecting,

providing for, and eventually prospering his family. God had protected Isaac in

Gerar, provided for him in Rehoboth and prospered him in Beersheeba. This same
God of his grandfather Abraham and father Isaac was soon to reveal His awesome

goodness to Jacob as well in a “Certain place!”

      Armed with only a walking stick and “Blessings on the brain,” Jacob arrived

at this “Certain place,” later revealed as Bethel, which means “House of God.”

This “Certain place,” which Jacob did not know, was actually a “Super-natural

stop” planned by God on Jacob’s trip to Paddan-aram to find a wife. God would

eventually return Jacob to this land (see Genesis 35) in fulfillment of His promise

soon to be revealed to this young explorer!

       No doubt wearied from the journey and whirlwind of emotions surrounding

years of family dysfunction, including the ominous death threat at the hands of his

brother Esau, Jacob fell asleep with his head on a stone. He could not have even

begun to imagine what he would see in a divine dream from God Himself!

“As he slept, he dreamed of a stairway that reached from the earth up to
heaven. And he saw the angels of God going up and down the stairway.
At the top of the stairway stood the LORD, and he said, “I am the LORD, the
God of your grandfather Abraham, and the God of your father, Isaac. The
ground you are lying on belongs to you. I am giving it to you and your
descendants.” Genesis 28:12-13
      God choose to introduce Himself to Jacob via this dramatic dream at Bethel,

“The House of God.”. Ushering Jacob through His picture show of promises, God

displayed his amazing goodness at a specific time and place in Jacob’s life.
       I think it is wise to consider the fact that Jacob had done nothing to deserve

or earn these promises from God. Jacob had ripped off his brother’s birthright and

lied to his father three times. Many would not consider him worthy of the gracious

promises God bestowed upon him. This undeserved goodness of God should bring

to mind a similar spiritual scenario for the born again Christian.

      Was it not God’s undeserved and unmerited favor that gave us the gift of

his precious Son Jesus? Do we remember “seeing” God’s rescuing hands of

goodness and deliverance in our hour of need? With "one hand", He Shielded us

from what our actions deserved and what God’s Holy nature required, while with

the "other hand" simultaneously lifted us to saving faith in His Son Jesus Christ!

       Have you ever considered that God sent His only unique Son to save us

from Himself and His demands of justice on account of our sin-soaked lives? Jesus

Christ went beyond merely deflecting the wrath of God’s holiness, like a shield, to

absorbing this wrath, like a solar panel so that we can experience the warmth of

His acceptance! “In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us

and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins” (1 John 4:10)

      It’s been said that when looking for a place to call home there are 3 crucial

factors to consider, namely, location, location and location. God provides a

perfectly placed “palace of protection” and “shelter of salvation” through His Son
Jesus Christ for all appointed to believe! “But Christ is faithful as a son over

God’s house. And we are his house, if we hold on to our courage and the

hope of which we boast.” Hebrews 3:6

       Not only can we enjoy this dwelling place Christ died to provide while we

live our lives on this earth, but through faith we lay hold of a “house in heaven”

built by the very hands of God. “Now we know that if the earthly tent we live

in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven,

not built by human hands.” 2 Corinthians 5:1

      This eternal house in heaven can be the “home of our hearts” and a safe

place to store up our true treasures in this life, for all of eternity! “Do not store up

for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where

thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where

moth and rust do not destroy and where thieves do not break in and steal.”

Matthew 6:19-20(emphasis added) Are your life experiences with God, (as He

reveals Himself to you,) bringing you closer to the One who knows you best and

wants you most?

      At this place in his life experience (recorded for us in Genesis chapter 28,)

Jacob, unlike Abraham and Isaac, had yet to experience this personal intimacy with

God Almighty. God chose to introduce Himself to Jacob through His undeserved
three fold promise of protection, provision and prosperity; an amazing

introduction, indeed! Jacob’s God given dream outlined the eventual prosperity

that Jacob’s family would bring to all nations!

“Your descendants will be as numerous as the dust of the earth! They will
spread out in all directions-to the west and the east, to the north and the
south. And all the families of the earth will be blessed through you and your
descendants.” Genesis 28:14 (emphasis & underline added)
      Did you catch the part about “All the families of the earth,” being blessed

through Jacob and his descendants? Jesus Christ is fully God and fully man. As a

man, He had to have a line of descendants to arrive into this world, in keeping with

God the Father’s promise to Jacob. After all Jesus himself said, “Salvation comes

from the Jews,” as recoded for us in John 4:22. Our blessings, as children of God,

come through this promise, originally given to Abraham, passed on to Isaac and

now fulfilled in Jacob!

“Therefore, the promise comes by faith, so that it may be by grace and may
be guaranteed to all Abraham’s offspring-not only those who are of the law
but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham. He is the father of us all.”
Romans 4:16(emphasis & underline added)
      I’m not convinced Jacob immediately saw the grandeur of God’s goodness

towards mankind as witnessed by his comments spoken the morning after this

incredible dream.
Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, “Surely the LORD is in this place
and I wasn’t even aware of it!
But he was also afraid and said, “What an awesome place this is! It is none
other than the house of God, the very gateway to heaven!”
Then Jacob made this vow: “If God will indeed be with me and protect me on
this journey, and if he will provide me with food and clothing, and if I
return safely to my father’s home, then the LORD will certainly be my God.”
Genesis 28:16-21.

      Does anyone else see a lot of “me” in the middle of this

declaration? Is a relationship with God an “if” He, “then” I, proposition?

Can He be debased to the place of a mathematical equation; if God does

this, then I will serve Him? Our flesh constantly cries out for what we

want, but God knows exactly what we need! I realize that Jacob was

only looking for protection and provision, promises that I believe God

specifically outlines in His Word. But where do our needs end and our

"greeds" begin? Oftentimes, it can be difficult to discern the difference,

because it boils down to the attitude of our hearts, which God is

watching, checking and testing. Why is what we do with our money so

important to God anyway? The love of money can master you and

destroy your relationship with God!
      Jesus said, "No one can serve two masters. For you will hate one and

love the other, or be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve

both God and money." Matthew 6:24(underline added) Could it be that

God is not willing to "spoil us" with material blessings that we do not

have the character to manage and use as He desires? James speaks to this

as he writes, "When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with

wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures." James

4:3(underline added)

      According to the world bank statistics, as of 2008, at least 80% of

humanity lives on less than $10 per day! There are 2 billion children in

the world and 1 billion of them live in poverty. What we do with our

money displays our hearts motives of which God sees and evaluates!

"Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust

destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves

treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy and where thieves

do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will

be also." Matthew 6:19-21
      Ouch, the truth of how God desires to use his word to correct and

train does not tickle or make me feel good! If we truly believe that God

does not continue to bless us for our own pleasures, what then is the

purpose of the provision and prosperity we have in America? "I tell you,

use worldly wealth to gain friends for yourselves, so that when it is gone,

you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings. Whoever can be trusted with

very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very

little will also be dishonest with much. So if you have not been trustworthy

in handeling worldly wealth, who will trust you with true riches?" Luke

16:9-11

      I, too, on many occasions, (after being introduced to God’s

beautiful presence, powerful protection, and amazing provision,) find

myself “negotiating” with God regarding the temporary trappings of

“my life.” My line of reasoning goes something like, “If you allow me

to have my hearts desires, then I will serve you.” If I could only see that

my brittle life and fleeting days have always been held by God’s

gracious hands! Demanding our desires from The Almighty God are
misguided at best and extremely arrogant in some situations. Perhaps

we can look to David's words as a reality check,

“But I trust in you, O Lord; I say, “You are my God.”

My times are in your hand; rescue me from the hand of my enemies and
from my persecutors! Ps 31:14-15 (underline added)
God offers an opportunity for genuine greatfulness toward God's

powerful promises as we reflect on His goodness! This holds especially

true when I am fighting the hand of the enemies, “in-a-me.” Thank God

for not giving me what my actions deserve, but rather remaining patient

in my misguided persistence and pride!

      [In the same way, it is hard to accuse Jacob of missing the bigger

picture of God’s promise of prosperity, through Jesus Christ, to all the

nations of the earth. Sure, he overlooked the opportunity to set up an

altar to worship the One True God on his first “Super-natural stop” in

Bethel. Please recognize that Jacob did acknowledge the awesomeness

of this “Certain place.” and God ALWAYS allows for “make-up tests”

in the process of yielding to Him! (see Genesis 35:3 for details.)
      Consider the raw reality of Jacob’s journey! He’s alone, perhaps

for the first time, in a distant land, with a stick to lean on and a stone for

a pillow. It makes sense that his focus fell a little short of God’s

powerful promise, doesn’t it? Again, to Jacob’s credit, however, he did

choose to worship God, through giving him a tenth of all that God

provided him.

      It seems that God knows exactly what we need, when we need it,

and how much of Him, we can appreciate at any given place in our life

journeys. If we allow Him, God will continually conform our character

to His by the hammer of His Word. This seems to hold true even in the

rocky trials these lives can bring us!

“Is not my word like fire,” declares the LORD, “and like a hammer that

breaks a rock in pieces?” Jeremiah 23:29

      Could it be that God desires to refocus our vision from looking

solely to the promise of protection, provision and prosperity, to a

personal, passionate and intimate relationship with Him? I think this

was what happened to Jacob, (renamed Israel by God), over the course
of his life. Perhaps, we too can overlook the best part of the promise of

intimacy with the person of Jesus Christ, in favor of the good gifts He

gives His children!

      This gateway to an intimate personal relationship with God was

most likely hidden from Jacob’s view in Genesis 28:12, but revealed to

us as Jesus calls attention to it in John 1:51.

      Please, read this carefully and prayerfully! As you compare these

two passages, see if you can find a connection between what is

mistakenly called “Jacob’s ladder” and later revealed to be Jesus Christ

Himself.

“As he slept, he dreamed of a stairway that reached from the earth up to
heaven. And he saw the angels of God going up and down the stairway.”
Genesis 28:12
“Then he said, “I tell you the truth, you will all see heaven open and the
angels of God going up and down on the Son of Man, the one who is the
stairway between heaven and earth.” John 1:51(emphasis & underline added).
      Did you see the truth that Jesus wants us to know about Him? Yes,

Jesus is indeed the stairway to heaven. This stairway, (that was lowered
from Heaven to Earth,) is available to all who have “Eyes to see” the

steps of faith!

      So how do we re-adjust our focus from [the place of introduction

to God’s goodness](ALLITERATION WITH "PR") and the promise

of God’s protection, provision and prosperity to see the Person of Jesus

Christ in our own lives?

      Pack a lunch and keep on living! This is a journey and not a

destination; a process and not a place! If our goal is to see the person of

Christ, we must choose to follow and obey Him as He leads us by His

Holy Spirit. I’m not suggesting some robotic adherence to a set of laws,

but rather discerning how the Spirit of God can bring beauty from ashes

by scripting the seasons of your life for His pleasure and your good!

“Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.”

Galatians 5:25

      It is clear that God is pleased by obedience to what He reveals to

us, which in turn proves our love for Christ. “If you love me you will keep

my commandments.” John 14:15 Jesus goes on to say, “Whoever has my
commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me. And he who loves me

will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and manifest myself to him.”

John 14:21

     It seems that the Spirit longs for us to listen and learn as He fine

tunes our lives through progressively changing and challenging life

experiences. As we respond with understanding and comprehension the

melody and harmony of these life experiences begin to slowly emerge.

These life experiences are masterfully orchestrated by an all knowing

and wise Father into the symphony that is our lives.

     Night Vision - Freedom from Fear

             Darkness penetrates so deeply that it threatens to rob us of

our God given blessings of protection, provision and prosperity. To

catch a glimpse of the potential for freedom in the lives we live could be

considered one of life’s greatest motivators.

      It always seems darkest before the dawn, but God comforts us, (in

Psalm 30:5,) that, “weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the

morning.”
     As we look at Jacob’s departure into darkness tearing his newly

formed family apart from wicked Uncle Laban at God’s command,

(AWKARD)we find that the fingers of fear tried to pull the God given

promises of protection, provision and prosperity from Jacob’s tired

hands. In response to Laban’s accusations Jacob replied ,“I rushed away

because I was afraid, I thought you would take your daughters from me by

force.” Have you ever experienced this fear of loss; threat of having

God’s blessings ripped from your life?

     I.Jacob Saw Lord as Deliverer in Time of Need

           A. "Fought" with God & Men & Won

           B. Clueless to Closeness - God's Presence

           C. Pile to Pillar

     II. How God Brought Change

           A.What is your name? (reputation, fame, glory, memorial,

monument)        Genesis 32:27-28

                 1)Jacob -Supplanter
                2) Your reputation, fame glory etc. no longer Jacob but

Israel(God prevails)

                3) You have striven with God & Men & Prevailed

           B. Changed Focus Place(Bethel) to Person(What is your

name)

           C. True Blessing Revealed!