Jacob and his uncle, Laban, who became his father-in-law, parried and negotiated with each other for years. Each took advantage of the other on occasion, but each also seemed to accept the other in the light of the perception of the family and culture of the times. They would have defended each other to anyone outside the family. There was inside competition, but they were family, and that significant difference from neighbors explains their mutual acceptance. It helps the purist in understanding the larger story. It explains some of what law enforcement agencies understand to happen when they are called out for family problems. The wife who called to complain about her husband’s mistreatment of her may turn on the officers sent for her defense. This probability prepares officers in advance when they respond to domestic violence, when they know they may become alleged bad guys in the case. The rescuers are going to need some sort of rescue.
On at least one poignant occasion, Laban dropped the ruse, the posturing, the negotiation of business, and openly admitted to Jacob that blessing had come to him because of Jacob’s involvement. In the awareness of Laban to events, God had blessed him more than normally since the arrival of Jacob. Therein is an important perception and lesson. Persons can be influential, in quiet and mysterious ways, in the lives of others. It is an open mystery, perceived when one sees beyond the margins of natural human experience. Laban was one of the factors in the prayers of Jacob. Laban gained the benefits of the blessing of Jacob, perhaps to a greater degree than Jacob received from Laban. Prayer to God, and patience with those persons and situations for whom prayer is made will influence vital outcomes. This is little understood.
Prayers, when the person at prayer senses how God works, are similar from day to day. This has been noted elsewhere in these Pages. Prayers at highest level do repeat themselves, if they are touching the core of the will of God for us. For decades I have prayed for myself, for the members of my family, for friends, for the church and missions, institutions, leaders, and peace. Prayer for family members is largely related to their spiritual nurture, but also related to health, love, meaning for life. Through the years I have noted the changes, incremental and meaningful to individuals for whom prayer has been made. I have prayed for peace, even when war comes and intensifies. If the prayer does not bring peace, it alleviates warfare somewhat – or so I firmly believe. Prayer is commonly to be perceived as larger than the perception of the believer at prayer. Prayer is like that. We cannot, even at prayer, perceive the whole picture of a life or its contexts, so must believe that God will amend the prayer, in his plan, to fit the context of the developing person or situation. God knows I want him to amend my prayers for benefit.
Through prayer I mean to influence for long term, and for the better, the lives of persons near to me and far. I pray for those I do not know. Whatever God does, in response to my prayer interests, will serve greater good than anything else I might do. He knows and I believe that the prayers sent to him, to be amended for the better by his will, are influential. The answers usually are afforded in incremental ways. So we pray about human concerns, in his will. Prayer is our God participation for good. Nothing could be better than that in my conduct. Taken with the editing of God, my prayers are the best time involvements of my days. Believing that, I am driven to constancy for prayer that gives to me a sense of fulfillment, of resistance to wrong, to the benefits of a better side. I wish I had gained this more intense insight earlier. *Mark W. Lee, Sr. — 2016, 2020