Forefeast of the Annunciation of the Mother of God; Our Venerable Father Zachary; Our Holy Father Artemon, Bishop of Seleucia in Pisidia.
Day 37 of the Great Fast.
Sixth Hour – Isaiah 49:6-10; Vespers – Genesis 31:3-16; Proverbs 21:3-21; Genesis 28:10-17; Ezekiel 43:27-44:4; Proverbs 9:1-11.
Read Genesis 31:3-16
Twice we read the Lord say to Jacob, “I will be with you.” We often focus on God’s presence with us during Christmastime. We reflect on the name “Emmanuel” for Jesus which means “God is with us,” and we attend the popular Great Compline service on Christmas Eve where we repeatedly hear “God is with us” sung as a part of a refrain. Now, during this final week of the Great Fast, we are given this extra opportunity to contemplate on the fact that God is indeed with us.
God instructed Jacob to return to his native land after seeing how he was being unjustly treated by his uncle Laban. Jacob diligently served Laban for numerous years, but it was eventually time to return to his own land and start up his own household. Even though Jacob was essentially in exile, working hard labor tending the flocks under the heat of the sun, God was still with Him.
Jacob is an heir to the promises God made to Abraham. God promised land and descendants, but yet for a long time Jacob was outside of his native land. The promised land is an image for us of the Kingdom of God. We are called to be sons and daughters of God, living in His kingdom. Yet, here on earth it’s like we are in exile, thirsting for the day we enter the Promised Land. Very often in life, things will happen to us that aren’t fair. There is suffering to be found on earth. We need to remember that even when we suffer injustice, God is with us, and God will always keep His promises to us.