Procrastination isn’t a course that you can take in college, but it might as well be one as I found myself waiting until the last possible moment to study for my next exam. Studying methods vary depending upon the class, but adrenaline and Mountain Dew kept me lingering on all night long. Perhaps, this prepared me for my eight-year run at Amazon working the overnight shift.
And now if you will deal kindly and truly with my master [showing faithfulness to him], tell me; and if not, tell me, that I may turn to the right or to the left. 50 Then Laban and Bethuel answered, The thing comes forth from the Lord; we cannot speak bad or good to you. 51 Rebekah is before you; take her and go, and let her be the wife of your master’s son, as the Lord has said. 52 And when Abraham’s servant heard their words, he bowed himself to the ground before the Lord. 53 And the servant brought out jewels of silver, jewels of gold, and garments and gave them to Rebekah; he also gave precious things to her brother and her mother. 54 Then they ate and drank, he and the men who were with him, and stayed there all night. And in the morning they arose, and he said. Send me away to my master, Genesis 24:49-54.
As you meet various individuals over the course of your life, you’ll find some who never shut up. Phone calls or personal visits that normally take 15 minutes linger on and on. Moses points out two separate evenings that suggest Rachel and Laban’s family were extremely hospitable and talkative. Two separate evening gatherings turn into an all-night affair, lingering on until morning.
Then Jacob offered a sacrifice on the mountain and called his brethren to eat food; and they ate food and lingered all night on the mountain. 55 And early in the morning Laban rose up and kissed his grandchildren and his daughters and pronounced a blessing [asking God’s favor] on them. Then Laban departed and returned to his home, Genesis 31:54-55.
As someone who struggled to express myself, I never had many long conversations until high school. Whether I was attending a mission trip or retreat, I always found myself taking a walk with one or more people, often revealing secret scars of my past. The longer I walked, the better I felt as a spirit of confession fueled us as if time stood still. Perhaps, this is what happened to Rachel’s family as their conversations lingered on all night long.
by Jay Mankus
ExpressYourself4Him 