Jacob was tired.
Physically because he had been traveling all day and mentally because his life was more chaotic and demanding than anyone else he knew. The thoughts of his life (past, present, and future) worked with relentless fervor in his mind as he saw stones scattered on the ground all around him. It’s almost dusk, he thought with exhausted relief. Time for sleep…time for rest.
He found a stone of modest size and laid down on the ground, placing the rock under his head like a pillow. His eyes grew heavy as the blue sky of day gave way to the purplish-black of night. The wind caressed his skin pleasantly, taking the sting out of the day’s heat; and somewhere in the distance he heard the cries of a new born lamb.
The lids of his eyes began to flutter uncontrollably as he sank into the deepness of sleep, enveloped by an invisible dark blanket that dulled his senses enjoyably. The last thing he heard before drifting off into complete slumber was the rhythmic pound of his heart against his chest. In that moment there was just Jacob sleeping on the ground and the voice of the wind as it passed by his body…or so it seemed.
As Jacob rolled over on his side he was quickly awakened by a brightness that pried open his eyes painfully. The scene before him was unbelievable, certainly a vision he would have a hard time believing if explained by someone else. But it was not someone else and he was seeing the impossible with his own eyes.
Up ahead stood a ladder.
Not a ladder of normal size, but instead one that started on the ground of the earth and reached up into the dark clouds of the night sky. As if this wasn’t astonishing enough, Jacob began to see angels going up and down the ladder. Giant heavenly beings of light that traversed the steps of the ladder with ease, almost as if they were gliding up and down from the Heavens to the earth with no notion of falling.
Jacob let his sight follow the ladder all the way to its top…past the dark sky and clouds and into a radiant pulsing light tha-
“I AM GOD,” a voice said from the bright cloud, pulsing different shades of gold and bright light, with each word that was spoken. “The God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac. I’m giving the ground on which you are sleeping to you and to your descendants.”
Pebbles and rocks bounced up and down off the soil as God spoke, much like the angels did climbing up and down the ladder. Jacob had to close his eyes to keep the dust from stinging them.
“Your descendants will be as the dust of the Earth; they’ll stretch from west to east and from north to south,” God continued. “All the families of the Earth will bless themselves in you and your descendants. Yes. I’ll stay with you, I’ll protect you wherever you go, and I’ll bring you back to this very ground. I’ll stick with you until I’ve done everything I promised you.”
Jacob opened his tightly clinched eyes, with a panicked breath, and then peered out into the darkness.
It was a dream.
The ladder, the angels, the voice of God. It was all a dream.
Yet, Jacob knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that God had spoken to him through the dream. In fact, he was certain he could feel the presence of God still with Him at that very moment.
God is in this place…truly, he thought to himself. And I didn’t even know it!
That thought, that knowledge, caused a bit of fear to come over him. Images of the giant ladder and Gods great light and voice, consumed his thoughts of just how truly big God is and always has been.
Jacob whispered in awe, “Incredible. Wonderful. Holy. This is Gods House. This is the gate of Heaven.”
--I translated the passage of Scripture above from Genesis 28:10-17--
I love this story, not only because of its breath-taking imagery, but also because of its reminder that God is everywhere and with us always.
This part of Jacob’s life also reveals a reality that I think we all can relate too.
How many of you have become so busy with your life that you’ve forgotten Gods presence in it?
How often do you think God has been trying to tell you something, but you’re so caught up in your own devices, that like Jacob, you didn’t even know He was there?
It’s a scary thought, isn’t it? To miss out on God because we’re too caught up in ourselves? Yes, it truly is. And for Jacob, God had to get his attention through a dream because Jacob wasn’t listening in the light of day. Now don’t get me wrong, Jacob’s dream was awesome! But I can’t help but feel that God would be more satisfied with getting our attention while we’re awake. We just have to let Him in, by letting go of our tight grips on life.
He’s here brothers and sisters. He’s there with you right now. He’s everywhere. Let’s open ourselves up to Him and hear what He has to say to us.
