When Laban had gone to shear his sheep, Rachel stole her father’s household gods. — Genesis 31:19
Sometimes you just wonder. What was Rachel thinking? I guess she thought she needed all the luck she could get.
I have a little rhyme I used to say to my son, "Two plus two equals four, seldom less, sometimes more." Here is a situation where addition doesn’t work. You can’t add to God and get more. You only get less.
When we add our efforts to God’s, we don’t end up ahead, we end up behind. God quietly steps out of the way until our own efforts run their doomed course.
As Abram stepped out into the unknown, God stepped out with him. He wanted to do the same for Rachel, and He wants to do the same for us. Whatever "rabbit’s foot" we bring along for extra security only puts a hole in our defenses.
The Bible doesn’t say, but it may be that Rachel clung to these gods for another ten to fifteen years until the slaughter at Shechem threatened to wipe out Jacob’s entire family. There, with danger all around, she may have finally learned that security only comes from the one true God.
Be encouraged!
Dwight
Dwight Clough is the author of four Christian books and is an active member of Lake City Church in Madison. This devotional is also available via email and you may review the archives back to 2002. To contact Dwight or Kim, use their contact form. You may also support their ministry.