Isaac named the place Rehoboth (which means “open space”), for he said, “At last the Lord has created enough space for us to prosper in this land.” Genesis 26:22
This week I felt like Isaac when he was trying to draw water from his father’s wells. The Philistines had filled the wells with dirt after Abraham died, so Isaac and his men dug them open again. But, the neighbors kept arguing over water rights.
Each time someone complained, Isaac moved on. Finally, he came to a place where his enemies would leave him alone. There, he dug a new well and named it Room-Enough-For-Us-At-Last (in the King James Version).
Several times this week I stopped and said, “Ah, yes. Now I have all the details for the day covered and I can take a breath.” Then the phone would ring. Or the computer program I’m trying to learn would reveal a new and confusing level of administration. Or, I’d remember I hadn’t written this column!
Finally, on Thursday morning I just stopped and looked at the lake. I remembered the nearly seventy people baptized there last night. And I thought, Why am I in such a dither about all this earth stuff? God has brought us to Rehoboth. He has filled our wells with Living Water, and He has sent the Philistines on the run.
Let’s just stop and take a drink, shall we?