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Full Circle

mckennedyauthor

”God said to Jacob, ‘Arise, go up to Bethel and dwell there. Make an altar there to the God who appeared to you when you fled from your brother Esau.’” —Genesis 35:1


Jacob had a unique experience with God. The younger of twin sons, he should have been second-best to his older brother, but God had chosen him as the one to inherit the promises made to Abraham decades earlier. Jacob deceived his way into his father’s personal blessing, gaining the hatred of his brother, but God used that to put him in the place where he met his wives and started his own family.


While escaping his brother’s wrath, Jacob set up camp for the night and went to sleep. As he slept, he had a dream—a dream in which God spoke to him and promised to be with him. When Jacob woke up, he built an altar to God, vowing to follow God if He would protect him and bring him back home one day. He called the place Bethel, which means “house of God.”


Jacob prospered over the next twenty years. He had left his father’s house with nothing, but when he finally returned, he had vast flocks of sheep, four wives, and eleven sons (soon to be twelve). God had blessed him beyond what he could have imagined.


After Jacob returned home, God summoned him to Bethel. He appeared to Jacob again there, reminding him of His promise long ago to be with him and protect him. This gave Jacob a special opportunity. He could look back at how far he had come and see God’s presence beside him every step of the way.


God had kept His promise to Jacob. Bringing him full circle helped him see that.

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