After tricking his father into giving him his brother’s blessing, Jacob went to find a wife. Isaac (Jacob’s Father) had told him not to marry a Canaanite woman and sent him back to his mother’s (Rebekah) home town, also Abraham’s home town. This was common practice in these days. So, he went to his mother’s brother, Laban.

When Jacob arrived, he saw Rachel, Laban’s younger daughter, and fell madly in love with her. In order to marry her, he agreed to work for Laban for 7 years. Laban agreed and Jacob spent the next 7 years working to receive the hand of Rachel. So great was his love for her that the Bible says those seven years felt like days.

When the seven years were finally up, a marriage celebration was held. However, Laban tricked Jacob. Instead of bringing Rachel to Jacob, Laban brings Leah, Rachel’s older sister. Jacob doesn’t realize the deception until after it’s too late. Considering Jacob’s history of deception, it seems dishonesty runs in the family.

Once Jacob realizes the deception, Laban offers him Rachel…if he works for another 7 years. So, in all, Jacob worked 14 years for the hand of the woman he loved.

A Labor of Love
One of the things that stuck out for me in this passage is how the years of labor flew by for Jacob because of his love for Rachel.

We all have things we have to do, but the reason we do them affects our attitude and how we perceive the work. This is true in marriage, families, our jobs, and even our church.

If we do something out of love for another or, especially, for God, we are going to have an attitude of joy and work won’t seem too bad. However, if we do something out of coercion, obligation, or for a reward of some sort (money, recognition, promotion, etc.) that work can quickly become a burden and lead to resentment.

If you start to feel resentful about the things you are doing, rather than looking to complain about the situation, start by looking at your own reasons for doing these things. You may just need to reorient why you are doing them to get rid of the resentment and start feeling contentment and joy again.