When the Lord saw that Leah was not loved, he enabled her to conceive, but Rachel remained childless. Leah became pregnant and gave birth to a son. She named him Reuben, for she said, “It is because the Lord has seen my misery. Surely my husband will love me now.” Genesis 29:31-32 (NIV)
Have you ever felt unloved, hurt, pushed aside, rejected, and abandoned? Have you ever searched for love from someone but experienced deep pain and heartbreak instead?
The Bible records that Leah walked that road: unloved, miserable, and lacking affection. Surely this must have caused her deep emotional pain, especially since these disruptions stemmed from her husband. Leah did not ask for such misery, but it presented itself to her.
The Lord saw that Leah was unloved. Thankfully, through His orchestration, there was one thing to her credit: She was fertile! Leah bore the first four sons of her husband Jacob: Reuben, Simeon, Levi, and Judah.
With the birth of Reuben, she hoped that her husband would then love her. This did not work for her. With the birth of Simeon, she hoped it would be the balm that soothed her emotional trauma, for she said it was because I am unloved, the Lord has done this for me. This, too, did not work. With the birth of Levi, she hoped that her husband would finally become attached to her. There was no success here either.
Sisters, how many times have you tried to get the attention and affection of your husband by doing the best you know and by using the very gifts God has given to you, but you still feel crushed and emotionally mangled? What great disappointment and hurt it must have caused Leah to know that there was no shift in her emotional estate regardless of her fertility and the gifts from her womb!
It was until Leah gave birth to her fourth son that she had a shift. Instead of waddling in emotional pain, she decided, “This time I will praise the Lord” (v35) and named her son Judah (meaning praise).
What is your emotional state today? Are you hurt, rejected, disappointed, unloved, or in misery? Is the pain so deep that you don’t think you can make it? Have you tried all you know, but you still feel the same way? Make a decision today: yet will I praise the Lord! Praise the Lord your Maker through the pain, the hurt, the disappointment, the rejection, and the misery. God sees you just like He saw Leah. As you praise the Lord, He is enthroned by your praises (Psalm 22:3). They become His dwelling place. Your praise will change your perspective and focus, and God will bring healing from deep within. Praise Him!
Prayer
Dear God, I’m emotionally wounded, battered, and in pain, but I choose today not to focus on the pain but to focus on You. I praise You, Lord! As I praise You, please bring emotional healing from deep within. Thank You, in Jesus’s name, Amen.
Read: Psalm 22:3; Psalm 147:3
Bible Reading Guide: Psalm 68:1-6; John 16:5-33; John 17:1-5; 1 Samuel 17:38-58; 1 Samuel 18
