Articles
Feeling Blessed
Jacob was a blessed man. His success was decreed before he was born (Gen. 25:23) and later
confirmed as a part of his inheritance (Gen. 27:27-29). I doubt he felt very blessed, though,
when he fled from his family, owning nothing (Gen. 27:41-45). However, twenty years later he
had become “exceedingly prosperous, and had large flocks and female and male servants and
camels and donkeys” (Gen. 30:43). He left with nothing. He returned wealthy. Clearly God had
blessed Jacob (Gen. 31:3).
But, what does a blessed life feel like? You might expect it to be a life filled with joys and
pleasures. A life with sweet dreams and no worries. Jacob tells us otherwise.
Being blessed and feeling blessed aren’t the same thing. After leaving his family, Jacob served
his father-in-law for twenty years. Looking back on those years, Jacob said to his father-in-law,
“That which was torn of beast I did not bring to you; I bore the loss of it myself. You required it
of my hand whether stolen by day or stolen by night. Thus I was; by day the heat consumed me
and the frost by night, and my sleep fled from my eyes. These twenty years I have been in your
house; I served you fourteen years for your two daughters and six years for your flock, and you
changed my wages ten times.” (Gen. 31:39-41). He concludes, “God has seen my affliction and
the toil of my hands” (Gen. 31:42).
Did you see how Jacob felt and what he endured during these years of blessing? The flock he
watched over were not immune to problems. Wild beasts attacked and successfully killed some
of the flock that Jacob was watching over. It wasn’t like Jacob was being negligent. He tried to
save the flock, but couldn’t save them all. Laban blamed Jacob and forced him to repay what
was lost. I bet that didn’t feel like being blessed.
Because of these threats to the flock, Jacob felt the need to keep watch twenty-four hours a day.
The sun beat down on him. It consumed him. At night, he endured the opposite. Frost nipped at
him. You can imagine how frigidly cold Jacob must have felt on those long bitter nights. His
circumstances were so difficult, and perhaps his worry over the flock was so intense, Jacob could
barely sleep. Do you suppose any of that felt like a blessing?
Jacob stayed with his father-in-law but was treated more like a servant…and his boss stunk!
Laban constantly changed their agreed upon arrangements, attempting to cheat. That couldn’t
have felt like a blessing.
No, Jacob was toiling and was afflicted (Gen. 31:42). Shortly after these things, Jacob would
face the fear that his brother, Esau, was going to kill him (Gen. 32:7-8). Esau didn’t, of course.
After all, God was with Jacob, blessing him. But being blessed and feeling blessed, are two very
different things.
In any given moment, Jacob could have described himself as cheated, afflicted, oppressed,
distressed, worried, and afraid. BUT, if he ever stepped back and looked at the big picture, he
would see things differently. Yes, he was losing sheep, but somehow he had gained a large flock
when previously he’d had none. Yes, he was being overcharged and cheated, but somehow he
had become wealthy and had servants of his own. He was truly blessed.
You see, being blessed and feeling blessed are two entirely different things. Take some time to
count your blessings and you might, like Jacob, realize that despite all the things you worry
about and all the things that trouble your heart, you are in fact, being blessed by God.
