But even after Jacob married Rachel she was barren and it took many years for her to conceive.
Jacob had a plan that would make him happy but The Lord had other plans for Jacob.
Jacob had 12 sons and they would each found one tribe of the 12 tribes of Israel. Jacob would also wrestle with an Angel through the night until he was renamed Israel by The Lord Himself.
Israel means "strives with God" I've also heard it to mean "wrestles with God."
Jacob didn't get what he wanted but The Lord saw fit to give him what he needed.
I wanted kids most of my life. But I was in no mood to settle down until I met my wife who has four children from her previous marriage.
My wife and I planned on having children of our own but it never happened and the for medical reasons my wife had to have a hysterectomy.
So our plans were shot but we did grow stronger as a couple because my wife knew I had given up my dreams of being a biological father in lieu of being a stepdad and her husband. She saw for as much as I wanted children of my own I wanted her more. I wanted to be a part of this family more than I wanted anything else.
I have never been in a healthier or more fufilling relationship. I did not get much of what I wanted, I got more than that, I got what I needed. I got a wife who loves me and I got to raise children who I see various traits of my wife in. And who love me because I stepped up when I didn't have to.
But I knew that a woman and her children are a package deal so it's all or nothing take it or leave it if you can't accept that you must put these children above yourself.
Stepping up to being a husband and stepdad was a choice but loving these kids or my wife never was.
Gods plan for Jacob was better than what Jacob had in mind for himself. And Gods plan for me was infinitely better than what I had in mind as well.
You can't always get what you want but you might find that with a little help of a The Lord, you will get what you need. And what you need is often times better than getting what you want. Sometimes God has a better plan.
