0368 Give Me Children Or Else I Die

Give Me Children Or Else I Die Gen.30:1; Phil.1:21

When she saw that she bore no children and her sister did How can I give you what God withheld? I’m not God! Desperation motivated by envy and comparison and impatience Hanna wept, Rachel envied. Rachel asked for many, Hanna asked for one. We want what others have cause we only want what we don’t have…not knowing they don’t have what we do One person’s dream, another person’s night mare

Desperate for productivity instead of intimacy Intimacy brings fruit, fruit can’t bring intimacy Jacob loved her before even he was married to her, Leah’s fruit couldn’t buy love (love is not bought)

Her purpose was her fruitfulness Children was her reason for living, not her marriage with Jacob Her relationship with Jacob was of lesser value then her social status

She sold intimacy to get fruit quirkier and didn’t succeed She did everything to have children and didn’t succeed First: give her maid to sleep with Jacob Second: give her husband for mandrakes (fruit instead of intimacy) Judah used Jesus to get ahead in life

She died after getting what she lived for

Paul had a mission and calling from God but his life was Christ When Jesus is the reason for living, then even dead is your gain Give me Jesus and I will live or Give children or else I die Paul is in prison – barren can’t do much for Jesus, all his life is about doing for Jesus Paul during first imprisonment went out from prison and still preached