She conceived again, and when she gave birth to a son she said, "This time I will praise the Lord." So she named him Judah...
Leah, this is why I love you. This is where you triumph - not by your own strength, but by the faithfulness of God.
Oh, how Leah's heart must have ached, being married to a man who didn't love her, constantly feeling the resentment of her husband and her sister, being thrown into a situation that she had little or nothing to do with.
She shows her pain in the names of her first three sons: Reuben ("The Lord has seen my misery. Surely my husband will love me now."), Simeon ("Because the Lord heard that I am not loved, He gave me this one too"), and Levi ("Now at last my husband will become attached to me."). It is so easy to feel the desperation of this housewife.
But then comes Judah, and with him, a change of heart for Leah. Because the battle for Jacob's attention continues between Rachel and Leah long after Judah's birth, I think it's safe to assume Leah's situation does not change. But her focus does. This time I will praise the Lord. No longer dwelling on the injustices of her life, Leah looks up and she praises the God who has been with her all along.
We cannot always change our circumstances, whether it's marital problems, sickness, joblessness, a rebellious child, or any other trial that comes our way. But we can always change our focus. Look up and say This time I will praise the Lord.
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