The One Year Bible - Day 13

Today is a great lesson to learn about Christians and romantic relationships. On the surface Genesis 20 is simply talking about Jacob marrying a woman of his 'own people' rather than a Canaanite woman. For us however, it is a reminder of the solidity of marrying inside of the kingdom and not simply finding a partner we 'like' or who is 'nice' (hopefully they will be these too!). We can see what happens to Esau after he decides to marry Canaanite women and all the trouble they bring to him and his family. I don't believe that the point is Canaanite people are bad and Abraham's people were good but rather we need someone who understands our perspective, our background, our culture, even if these things are spiritual rather than physical.

We will not easily teach people this word since we tend to think we can handle it all and we know whether someone is worth marrying or not but these stories are all reminders of the effects of us deviating from what might not be a commandment but which is God's way to a fulfilled life.