Eryn vs. Esau

I was reading in Genesis 25 yesterday. It first talks about the death of Abraham. And then it goes onto the lineage of Abrahams sons, Ishmael and Isaac. When I got to the story of Isaac's sons, Jacob and Esau, it wasn't anything new. I've read it many times. But you know how the Lord works; He brings new things to light every time you read His word, especially when what you're reading slips right into everything else He's teaching you. I'm going to pick it up in verse 24, where Isaac's wife Rebekah gives birth.

 ²⁴ When the time came for her to give birth, there were twin boys in her womb. ²⁵ The first to come out was red, and his whole body was like a hairy garment; so they named him Esau. ²⁶ After this, his brother came out, with his hand grasping Esau’s heel; so he was named Jacob. Isaac was sixty years old when Rebekah gave birth to them.

 ²⁷ The boys grew up, and Esau became a skillful hunter, a man of the open country, while Jacob was content to stay at home among the tents. ²⁸ Isaac, who had a taste for wild game, loved Esau, but Rebekah loved Jacob.
 ²⁹ Once when Jacob was cooking some stew, Esau came in from the open country, famished. ³⁰ He said to Jacob, “Quick, let me have some of that red stew! I’m famished!”
 ³¹ Jacob replied, “First sell me your birthright.”
 ³² “Look, I am about to die,” Esau said. “What good is the birthright to me?”
 ³³ But Jacob said, “Swear to me first.” So he swore an oath to him, selling his birthright to Jacob.
 ³⁴ Then Jacob gave Esau some bread and some lentil stew. He ate and drank, and then got up and left.
   So Esau despised his birthright.

First of all, let me tell you how big of a deal it was for Esau to give up his birthright. A birthright was an irreplaceable and priceless thing. It had everything to do with inheritance and authority. So for Esau to give it up was no small matter. He was giving up his life! And I'm reading it and I'm like, "Really Esau? Really? You gave up your frickin birthright for a bowl of stew?? Are you crazy?"

But then at church tonight, my pastor was speaking on the difference between seeing things through the filter of "Is it right or is it wrong" and "Is it wise or is it foolish?" Because so many things in our lives don't neatly fit into "right" or "wrong." It's not all black and white. There are many more grey areas than there are black or white areas. And so maybe we shouldn't be asking, "Is it right or wrong?" because too often, if something's not "wrong," than we declare that it must mean it's right. And that's just not true. Something's not being wrong does not make it right. Instead, we should be asking, "Is this wise or is this foolish?" And my pastor read this passage, and I found myself thinking again that Esau was crazy. But after having a conversation with a friend of mine, and after I thought about it more, I realized...how different am I really from Esau? How different are any of us from him? It's the principle of the matter, not the details. Esau's entire and ultimate future was in his birthright. But he gave it up to have an immediate satisfaction, and a fleshly and temporary one at that. He gave up his ultimate for his immediate. How many times a day do we do that? Sure, they might be small decisions here and there, but the road to destruction is paved with small choices here and there, foolish choices, that ultimately lead to devastation. And sure, it might look stupid to me that Esau gave up his birthright for a bowl of stew. But I'm sure someone looking at my old life might have said the same thing, regarding whatever it was that I exchanged. "Eryn gave up that for this? Stupid." I thought it myself. But we all have our own "bowl of stew." And because of Esau's foolish choice to satisfy himself for that immediate moment, his entire future was changed.

Hindsight is both beautiful and crappy. It's beautiful because you see things in different ways, and you learn. But it's crappy because you can't help but think...if only I knew back then...
I see and know every decision and choice I made and every step I took to lead me to where I ended up. I gave up many "ultimates" for my "immediates." And yes, destruction and consequences caught up with me. While the destruction sucked, it was also my Abba's saving grace. It has been the perfect picture of how God takes what the enemy meant for evil and turns it into good, into redemption, into beauty and newness.

Back to Esau. Several chapters later, we get to see a glimpse into Esau's life as he and Jacob reunite. Esau is blessed. He has more than enough livestock and belongings for himself and his family. So even though years and years and years before, he gave up his birthright, God made Esau a new "ultimate". And it was good.

What choices are you making everyday? Right ones? Wrong ones? Wise ones? Foolish ones? What "ulitmates" are you giving up for your "immediates" that will one day catch up with you? We can change them now. And God can change the ones already made, into something new and beautiful if we only surrender to Him.


The Best Is Yet To Come...