“Now Isaac pleaded with the LORD for his wife, because she was barren; and the LORD granted his plea, and Rebekah his wife conceived.” ~ Genesis 25:21
REFERENCE:
Isaac was one man whom the bible gives a detailed account of his finding a wife and marriage. His father, Abraham, sent his servant under oath on an expedition to find a wife for Isaac. Miraculous coincidences, answers to prayers, and divine favor marked this journey. Everything pointed to the fact that Rebekah was God’s appointed wife for Isaac and the future mother of his children.
Sadly, like her mother-in-law Sarah, Rebekah could not bear children. Yes, questions would naturally arise. Was she God’s will for Isaac? Can a sterile woman be the one divinely chosen to perpetuate the Promised Line? Did the servant or Isaac miss it somewhere in choosing her? Or had the servant, or even Isaac, misread some signs? Isaac clearly understood, “God brought us together; it will take the same God to beat barrenness.” Isaac responded differently than his father did when he was in the same situation. We never read that Abraham prayed for Sarah; instead, he slept with his maid, Hagar, and had a son with her. Although Abraham prayed for others to have children (Genesis 20:17-18), we never read that he made any petition or intercession on behalf of his wife before God.
Isaac portrays the priestly role of husbands over their wives. Men enjoy their kingly roles, seeking respect, but God wants them to be priests to their wives. They should lift them before God in prayers, seeking their health, well-being, progress, and God’s visitation in areas they need divine intervention. The God who called man to be a priest to his wife is eager to answer his earnest plea for her. I have laid hands on my wife or held hands with her in prayers and seen God answer in unique ways. It is the priestly thing to do. God visited Sarah (Gen 21:1-2), and He remembered Rachael (Gen 30:22) to reverse their barrenness, but there was no (direct) mention of God regarding Rebekah’s conception. It was by the intercession of her husband.
I charge every man to take up their priestly role. Is there an impossible situation that bothers your wife? Difficulty at work? A health challenge? A desire to have a child? Etc. Make earnest intercession (if possible, fast), and plead with God on her behalf. The God who sent His Son to die for His bride, the church, will hear and give you both a testimony, in Jesus’ name.
PHOTO QUOTE
ADDITIONAL TEXTS:
I Peter 3:7, Ephesians 5:25-29 & Job 22:27-30
PRAYERS (TO DOS):
+ This is a call to intercession for others: Is there a friend, a parent, a colleague, or a neighbor who is in a desperate situation? Take the place of a priest and intercede before God for them.
+ As a husband, ask your wife what one thing she would want you to pray for. Hold her hands and intercede for her. Continue afterward.
+ Are there married couples around you who desire the fruit of the womb? From today, include them in your prayers and watch God answer you and them.
Lord, I take up intercession for the married couples I know, who desire to have children. I draw on Your miraculous power to breakthrough for them. Give conception and cause delivery, in Jesus’ name. SO SHALL IT BE!
Amen!
Amen! I shall testify!
Hear my cry oh Lord and attend unto my prayers as I take up my place as the priest in my home
AMEN!
AMEN !</strong
It is amazing to see that out of the patriarchs, Isaac is the only one who interceded for his wife. He is the only one who had one wife till the end. He himself was a child sent by God and maybe knew what his mom went through as an only child to an old woman. I’ve usually seen him as a softie, but as an intercessor, he was a strong man.
Thank God for men who don’t just talk about their kingly roles, but are priests over their homes.
Yes, indeed! Great thought.
Lord I pray for my friends who are married and desiring a child; even as I pray for my self, that you bless us with the gift of conception and that we will carry our babies to full term and deliver safely in Jesus name. Amen!
AMEN!