How Long Will You Work for What God Has Promised?!

One of my goals is to read the Bible in a year. In doing this I am reading.in Genesis. Today I read the stories of Jacob and how he built his family. [Chapters 28-31] I remember the last time I read those stories and thinking his father-in-law cheated him multiple times! This time it was something else that stuck out to me.

In verse 41 of chapter 31 Jacob says "It was like this for the twenty years I was in your household. I worked for you fourteen years for your daughters and six years for your flocks, and you changed my wages ten times." If you just rake that as face value then all that stands out is dude got his wages changed a lot.

Don't forget what God sent him there for, to get a wife. All Jacob was supposed to go do was get a wife and bring her back to the place of his father. In his mind I'm.sure he's thinking like a week or 2 weeks tops! Instead he ended up raising his family there.

I wonder how many of us have been in a place, are in a place or is about to be in a place like that. A place where God says go here and do this and we are picturing it taking "X" amount of time, when really the place God is sending us to will take 20 years of hard work...

You see Jacob didn't just go and hang out for 20 years, he worked his tail end off! And was cheated multiple times out of what he was told he was going to receive. You know he had to have thought more than once 'what have I gotten myself in to?!' But he kept on, there is no record of him getting upset with God because it was taking too long or he was being cheated. He just kept on working and God gave to him what was his.

Are you in that place right now?! You're in that place of obeying God and listening to his commands, staying strong and enduring. Doing it all because of a promise he gave to you once. That promise might have been given a few months ago or a year. Maybe even 20 + years ago. How long will you wait for God? Will you choose to endure until the end?! Remember the promise! Genesis 28:15 God promises Jacob, and you and I, "I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you."

Abide in that today!

~Awaken Us~
Brenna Stanford

Stand Firm!

Check out this song! And this one!!

I just want to take this time to encourage every body who is going through a storm or facing some sort of difficult time right now. Stay strong! Stand firm!

God has the victory for you! Sometimes the most beautiful sunrises come after the darkest night! If you're in a shadow, know it's because there is light on the other side. No matter how hard or how long it is in that place, there is a victory for you! Just keep holding on, Stand Firm! Don't give up!

Below is a list of scripture to keep in mind!

Exodus 14:13 Moses answered the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance theLord will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again.

2 Chronicles 20:17 You will not have to fight this battle. Take up your positions; stand firm and see the deliverance the Lord will give you, Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. Go out to face them tomorrow, and the Lord will be with you.’”

Psalms 40:2 He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand.

Proverbs 10:25 When the storm has swept by, the wicked are gone, but the righteous stand firm forever.

Mark 13:13 Everyone will hate you because of me, but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved.

Luke 21:19 Stand firm, and you will win life.

1 Corinthians 16:13 Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be courageous; be strong.

Philippians 1:27 Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. Then, whether I come and see you or only hear about you in my absence, I will know that you stand firm in the one Spirit, striving together as one for the faith of the gospel

James 5:8 You too, be patient and stand firm, because the Lord’s coming is near.


I hope you feel encouraged! Your mind will be the biggest part of the battle. You have been given control over it. You get to decide what you will think. So think and focus on the promises of God, not the appearance of circumstances!

~Awaken Us~
Brenna Stanford