REHOBOTH IS JUST AHEAD

We all have dreams God has put in our hearts, and God’s promises we are holding onto. Sometimes we get closer to that dream or promise, but unfortunately hit with a challenge and feel as if we are starting all over again. The good news is that the challenges to that dream or promise have a limited time left because your Rehoboth is just ahead! The scripture says ”Behold, I will do a new thing, Now it shall spring forth; Shall you not know it? I will even make a road in the wilderness And rivers in the desert”. Isaiah 43:19

Rehoboth is a place of calmness, joy, peace, fulfilled promises and God’s overflow. A place where strife, argument, disappointment and heartbreak can not survive! An Open, spacious place for expansion. A place where the opposition, disunity, and quarrel can’t get a third bite of the cherry! It’s a place of unity, one purpose and commitment. A place of rest from conflict and worries!

During one of the famines in the scriptures, Isaac was looking for food for his family and pasture for his flock, he travelled to a city called Gerar. It was ruled by the Philistines. He was planning on going further, but God spoke to him and said, “Do not go down to Egypt, stay in this land and I will bless you. I will multiply your descendants as the stars in the heavens”. God gave him this incredible promise, but it didn’t come without opposition and frustration. 

It was tempting for Isaac to leave, get out of the famine, and go down to Egypt for greener pastures, but Isaac obeyed. He did the right thing when it wasn’t easy. He set up camp there, and he went out and he planted his fields. It Looked like he was wasting his time, but that same year he reaped a hundredfold return, a supernatural harvest. They couldn’t understand. How could he get this great harvest during a famine? Instead of being happy for him, they were jealous, they started talking and stirring up trouble, making his life miserable. 

The king finally told him, “You have to leave here, you become too powerful for us”. You can imagine how disappointed Isaac must have been. He had seen all that favour, but now he was forced out, had to pack up his whole camp, move his family, and his livestock, and leave behind all the fields he had poured so much time and energy into. Wasn’t fair, he hadn’t done anything wrong. It was because of small-minded jealous people.

Here is the key: you can be in God’s will and still have opposition. You can be obedient like Isaac, you are doing the right thing, you stayed in the right place, and you have that promise in your heart, but doors have closed, there is jealousy, and people have come against you. It’s easy to get discouraged, “Why didn’t this work out? They did me wrong” but everything is serving God’s plan. You can’t see it right now but it’s moving you closer to your Rehoboth. Keep doing the right thing when the wrong thing happens, keep believing, keep praying, and keep your trust in God.

Isaac moved to the valley of Gerar, and there were wells that Abraham; his father had dug many years earlier. The Philistines had stopped those wells and filled them with rocks and dirt. Having water was extremely valuable out there in the desert. So Isaac and his men went out and re-dug the wells that belonged to his father. 

When the local shepherds saw the water, and how the well was flowing again, they realized what they had been missing, they said to Isaac, “What are you doing here? This is our water. This well belongs to us”. It had been there for years, clogged up, they did nothing with it. Isaac did all the work, he belonged to his family in the first place but there was all this strife and contention. Isaac could have put up a big fight and engaged in conflict. Instead, He said, “Fine, you can have the well”. He walked away.

There are times you need to stand your ground for what is yours but there are also times you have to be the bigger person and let someone else be right, even though you know they are wrong. You have to release it. Have the attitude, “God, they are not taking it from me, I’m giving it to them”. Sow it as a seed… Otherwise, you can become bitter, “That wasn’t fair. I’m going to pay them back”… Please Let it go!

You are not being weak by walking away, it takes a strong person to let it go. You are not losing letting them get the best of you. It’s not over. You can’t see it yet, but God has taken you somewhere greater. “Well, pastor, it’s not right. I re-dug those wells, I work for this contract, this position, this property, I deserve it”. But here is the key: that well is not your source, God is your source. He has ways to promote you that you have never thought of.

In verse 20 of Genesis 26, the scripture says that Isaac “called the name of the well Esek” (quarrel) because the people quarrelled with him”. He left that place and went to the other side of the valley, far away so he wouldn’t have to deal with those people. He found another well that belonged to his father, clogged up, not used in years, nobody within miles. He re-dug that well and spent weeks, he and his men working hard. 

Isaac and his men finally got the well flowing again. Right there, came some more Philistines, some more shepherds, “What are you doing here? These are our wells, they belong to us”. I’m sure Isaac thought, “Come on, not again. Are you kidding me”? He could have argued, put his foot down and said, “Not this time”. However, He told his men, “Let them have it”. Another disappointment. He named that well: Sitnah “lier in wait” or Oppositions. (Genesis 26:1-22)

Remember he had this promise from God, “If you will stay in this land, I will bless you, and  I will multiply your descendants”… This can only be a test. Amid those challenges and opposition do you still believe God’s promises concerning your life? Well number one didn’t work out, Well number two didn’t work out. Isaac could have laid down his shovel and said men we are done, let’s go down to Egypt, it will not work here in Gerar.  However, he tried it one more time; defined his stands, moved away and gave it another try somewhere else.

WHAT IS YOUR STAND?

You may be where Isaac was or can’t even explain your stand right now… You have been through disappointments, heartbreak, people came against you, or there was strife and division, but you walked away. Every time you dig something up, and give your commitment, the wells keep getting taken away… The commitment keeps getting dashed. You are tempted to settle where you are and think it’s not meant to be even with another. God is saying to you that your story doesn’t end in defeat, injustice, heartbreak, in being overlooked. Those clogged wells, and the bad experiences are setting you up for well number three or your Rehoboth.

Isaac picked up his shovel, travelled to a different part of the valley, and dug one more well that belonged to his father. The water came gushing out stronger than ever. This time nobody bothered him, no shepherd showed up, no conflict, no strife. The scripture says, “…So he called its name Rehoboth, because he said, “For now the Lord has made room for us, and we shall be fruitful in the land.” (Genesis 26:22)

Rehoboth comes along with peace, rest from trouble, rest from heartbreak, and rest from disappointment. It comes with abundance, overflow, and more than enough… But notice the progression: before he could get to Rehoboth, he had to go through the well of quarrel, and deal with strife and conflict. He had to go through well number two, the well of opposition, people coming against him, things that weren’t fair. Also, he had to deal with the disappointment of that king that forced him out of his harvest. Could have laid his shovel down, and settled for mediocrity, but he kept on digging.

Maybe like Isaac, you did your best. The dream hasn’t worked out, a relationship failed, and you got passed over for the promotion. Now you laid your shovel down, you think it’s not meant to be. God is not finished with you. You had to go through well number one, the business ended, the relationship ended or the doors had to close.

You had to go through well number two, the injustice had to happen, the project had to be delayed or another relationship with another heartbreak! The good news is: well number three is coming or God has a Rehoboth just ahead of you. Yes, your Rehoboth is not far from you. Staying in well number one or well number two may keep you in conflict and strife for a very long time. Step out from that conflict, disappointment, heartbreak or loss! Your Rehoboth is just ahead, and God is going to pay you double for all your troubles!

As Isaac looked out and saw the vast land, and all the blessings and favour, I’m sure he thought, “God, thank you for not letting me stay at well number one. Thank you for closing that door at well number two. Thank you for having that king get jealous and push me out”. He realized that the injustice, the strife, and the jealousy were a setup. He wasn’t supposed to stay there. Yes, you are never supposed to stay in that relationship! Had Isaac been stubborn, and tried to force it, he would have lived in conflict, frustrated and never seen the unquenchable joy that God had in store for his household.

I wonder if you are disappointed over things that you are going to look back and say, “God, thank you that those people didn’t accept me. Thank you that you didn’t let me be comfortable in that relationship or partnership. Thank you that those people took the position that I deserve”. When you come into your Rehoboth, you won’t think about the injustice, the betrayal, the heartbreak, the delay. You will be so overwhelmed, that all you can say is “See what the Lord has done”.

There will be these times in life when you don’t understand it, doesn’t make sense. You will be tempted to fight, to prove, to hold on… But sometimes God allow doors to close. He doesn’t let well number one work out or well number two on purpose, because He has bigger things in store. You may have to walk away from something that’s not fair. You dug that well, it belonged to you, but they stirred up trouble. That is a test: God is taking you to Rehoboth, to something bigger, more fulfilling. Don’t settle there, get your shovel out and keep digging.

God has not brought you this far to leave you. He has seen the disappointments, the heartbreak, the injustice, and the lonely nights. That is not how your story ends. Rehoboth is ahead, Now, keep moving forward in faith, not frustrated, not bitter. God is in control and it’s working for good. If you do this, I decree and declare that you are going to come into your Rehoboth and the fullness of your destiny, in Jesus’ name.

The Lord bless you and keep you; The Lord make His face shine upon you, And be gracious to you; The Lord lift His countenance upon you, And give you peace.”’