Genesis 27:1-29

“What if my father touches me? He’ll see that I’m trying to trick him, and then he’ll curse me instead of blessing me.” (Genesis 27:12, NLT)

You’ve heard of “the domino effect”. Our decisions have inevitable consequences. We make our choices, and then our choices make us. When my wife and I decided to leave our home in California to move to Idaho to start a church, we had no idea how this would change our lives. Over the past three decades, we have seen God do so many things that never would have happened if we stayed in California.

When the movie Jesus Revolution was released, our church bought the entire theater for its premiere showing, and every seat was filled. I recall thinking to myself: this would not have happened if we had not moved here.

We have all experienced such situations in our lives where if one detail had been different, there would have been an entirely different outcome. A “chance” meeting opens a whole new opportunity. We make one choice, and tens or hundreds of people are affected by it.

This “domino effect” can also work negatively. Our sins can have devastating consequences. When Rebekah persuaded her son Jacob to deceive his father Isaac to get the blessing of the firstborn, it brought painful and irreversible results to the family. And yet through it all, God was working out His will in His chosen ones. However, we cannot help but wonder how the story would have unfolded if everyone had followed God’s plan rather than their own.

When circumstances aren’t to our liking, we can either try to “help God out” by doing things our own way, or we can pray, trust the LORD, and seek to obey His word. Either way, there will be consequences. But which way do you think will give the most favorable outcome?