I Am Seen

Beloved People of God,

The Bible is full of so many amazing stories! Obvious right?! Okay, but humor me for a moment. The mind reels as we read of the cosmos created. The pulse races as the rain beats against the side of the ark and then lifts it up into the waves. The heart swells when Noah and his family stand again on solid ground gazing at the rainbow, the soaring symbol of God’s covenant. There are so many big stories with big heroes (Abraham, David, Elijah to name a few) whose stories are packed with adrenaline.

There are also hundreds of “minor” characters, men and women we find in only a handful of verses, that—if we stop and think about—have outsized testimonies of God’s faithfulness. One great example of someone in the Bible often looked over—just as she was in life—is Leah (Genesis 29.15). Left to our own rushed reading we’d be excused for missing her. If Jacob and Rachel’s love story is a chapter, Leah is an easily lost footnote. Rachel is described for her striking beauty, but only Leah’s eyes are noticed (29.17). Which is poetically telling. Leah alone sees how unseen she is. She's overlooked by everyone around her, and she sees it. She’s a side character in the story of her own life.

Trapped in a loveless marriage, Leah tries to be seen based on the best ideas of her place and time. Barnabe Assohoto insightfully shows us how, “Leah’s reasoning is a product of her culture. She was sure that Jacob would love her if she bore him sons. That is why she greeted Reuben’s birth with the words, ‘Surely my husband will love me now’ (29.32).” Reuben’s name literally translates, “See, a son!”

Leah’s story is amazing, but not in the ways we might expect. She doesn’t win over her husband. She doesn’t gain the respect from others she deserves. What she gains is something far greater: she is seen by God (29.31). It takes Leah a while to get past her best efforts to discover the One who sees her and loves her. (Sound familiar?) Seeing Leah’s life, we find an amazing truth for our own: we too are seen and beloved by God.

For Christ the King, 

Brett