This morning, my wife and I stepped into unfamiliar territory—we attended the 8:00 AM service at Freedom Church in Bel Air, instead of our usual 11:30 AM. Freedom is a vibrant, growing church community that now holds three Sunday services and one on Saturday night to make room for all those chasing after the heart of God.
Today, however, wasn’t a typical Sunday. We rose early not out of routine, but in reverence. Later that day, we laid my wife’s beloved uncle to rest—a man of 79 years who is now in the eternal care of our Lord. Grief walked with us into the sanctuary, but so did God’s comforting Word.
The message this morning hit home. It was part of a powerful sermon series on living according to God’s timing. The focus was Genesis 29—the story of Leah and Rachel. A story many of us know, but few of us fully feel until we’ve walked through our own seasons of disappointment, delay, and divine redirection.
What stood out was this truth:
What We Want Isn’t Always What God Wills
Jacob’s heart was set on Rachel. She was beautiful, radiant—the one he loved. He worked seven long years to marry her, only to be deceived and wake up next to Leah, her older sister. Disappointment doesn’t even begin to describe that moment. It was betrayal. Confusion. Heartache.
And yet, Leah was part of God’s plan.
We so often chase our “Rachels”—the dreams that sparkle, the outcomes we long for, the goals that stir our ambition. But sometimes God gives us Leah first—not as punishment, but as preparation. He gives us the season we didn’t expect to prepare us for the promise we can’t yet see.
Jacob ended up working fourteen years for the blessing he thought he’d secure in seven. And still, God was in it.
When Business Feels Like Leah
As a business owner, this story resonates deeply. I’ve had my share of Leah seasons—times where the work was endless and the reward seemed delayed. Seasons of sweat with little fruit. Days when I questioned, “God, did I miss Your voice? Wasn’t this the path You led me to?”
And yet, year after year, I kept working. Kept believing. Kept trusting. The progress was invisible. The results, inconsistent. But through it all, I was being shaped—humbled, refined, matured.
Fourteen years. That’s how long Jacob labored before he could finally be with the one he loved. And it’s not far off from how long it’s taken me to see certain dreams begin to flourish in my own life.
There’s something holy about a long wait.
There’s something sacred about working through disappointment while still trusting God.
Leah: The Unseen Gift
What’s often overlooked in this story is that Leah was never a mistake. In fact, from Leah came Judah. And from Judah came Jesus. The Savior of the world entered through the very line that began with a woman unloved by man but chosen by God.
That hits hard.
Leah represents the seasons of life where we feel unnoticed, uncelebrated, maybe even unwanted. But those seasons aren’t wasted. They are the soil in which God plants His greatest promises.
Maybe your business hasn’t grown the way you hoped. Maybe your ministry hasn’t taken off. Maybe you’re still in a job that feels like a holding pattern. Or a relationship that feels more like duty than delight. Maybe you’re in your Leah season right now.
But let me encourage you—God sees Leah. And He sees you.
He saw her tears. He heard her prayers. And He blessed her more than she could have imagined. Her legacy lived on through the Messiah Himself.
Trust the God of the Long Road
Genesis 29 isn’t just a love story—it’s a faith story. A reminder that what feels like a detour may be the very road to your destiny.
Jacob didn’t quit after seven years. He didn’t walk away after the deception. He stayed. He worked. He trusted. He obeyed. And eventually, the blessing came.
If you’re in a waiting season right now, don’t despise it. God may be doing more in the waiting than He ever could in the rushing.
If you’re laboring without applause, know this: Heaven sees what man overlooks. And your faithfulness is not in vain.
From the Valley to the Vision
Today, as I sat in that early morning church service, grieving a beloved family member and reflecting on years of hard-earned lessons in business and life, Genesis 29 became more than a sermon—it became a mirror.
It reminded me that success often looks like faithfulness long before it looks like fruit. That obedience is greater than outcome. That Leah isn’t just the beginning—sometimes she is the blessing.
And it reminded me to keep walking. Keep trusting. Keep working in love and patience. Because the same God who saw Leah, who sustained Jacob, who birthed a Savior through a lineage of heartbreak and hope—is the same God who’s walking with you.
So stay steady in your Leah season. Your Rachel is coming.
But more importantly—your God is already here.
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