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Speaker 1: And the man bowed down his head and worshiped the Lord.

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Speaker 1: Genesis twenty four, twenty six. Dear God, as I am

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Speaker 1: on my journey to fulfilling the purpose you have for

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Speaker 1: my life, thank you Lord for partnering me with the

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Speaker 1: right people. I decree and declare that to day is

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Speaker 1: the day that you begin to partner me with kingdom connections.

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Speaker 1: I decree and declare that as I'm moving in obedience

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Speaker 1: and working in alignment with your assignment, that your giving

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Speaker 1: me uncommon favor with uncommon men and women. I want

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Speaker 1: to also thank you in advance for my spouse. Thank

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Speaker 1: you that they are being preserved and protected. I know,

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Speaker 1: like Isaac and Rebecca, my spouse will be your best

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Speaker 1: for my life. I declare that my marriage will be

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Speaker 1: one of purpose and understanding. I declare that we will

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Speaker 1: be in sync as two hearts become one. Lord, I

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Speaker 1: praise you for helping me to become the person I

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Speaker 1: need to be to love them completely. Thank you for partnerships.

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Speaker 1: Thank you for relationships. Then, thank you Lord for placing

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Speaker 1: the right people at the right place at the right

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Speaker 1: time in my life. In Jesus' name, Amen, thank you

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Speaker 1: for praying with us today. Continue your time with God

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Speaker 1: by listening to today's Bible story, brought to you by

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Speaker 1: Bible in a Year dot.

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Speaker 2: Com Isaac and Rebecca.

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Speaker 3: Before this story, we learned how God told Abraham to

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Speaker 3: sacrifice Isaac. God had finally given Abraham his promise, but

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Speaker 3: now required an act of faith. Abraham, with anguish and sorrow, obeyed,

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Speaker 3: but the Lord provided a ram instead and blessed Abraham

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Speaker 3: for his obedience. Now we will learn about Sarah passing

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Speaker 3: away and Isaac meeting and marrying Rebecca has inspired by

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Speaker 3: the Book of Genesis.

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Speaker 4: I'm so glad you've joined us on the Bible in

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Speaker 4: a Year podcast today. But before we get to today's episode,

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Speaker 4: I want you to know that I would absolutely love

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Speaker 4: to send you my daily devotional that will give you

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Speaker 4: fresh encouragement every single morning and day from the moment

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Speaker 4: we wake up to the moment our head finally hits

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Speaker 4: the pillow. There are thousands of things demanding our attention.

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Speaker 4: But it's in the midst of all this crush and

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Speaker 4: hustle and bustle that you and I need peace and

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Speaker 4: truth in God's Word. That's why I want to help

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Speaker 4: you spend time each day growing in God's life giving,

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Speaker 4: life changing word by sending you my free daily email

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Speaker 4: devotional PowerPoint Today. So visit Jagraham dot org to sign

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Speaker 4: up for your PowerPoint Today devotional. That's Jagraham dot org

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Speaker 4: Jack Graham dot org. Now that God has tested Abraham's faithfulness,

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Speaker 4: which he passed with flying colors, our narrative turns to

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Speaker 4: a time of grieving loss, followed by a preparation for

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Speaker 4: the future. The first thing we'll hear of is the

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Speaker 4: death of Sarah. She had lived long, finally born a

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Speaker 4: son to Abraham, and now the Lord was calling her

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Speaker 4: to her eternal rest in him. This was to be

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Speaker 4: a time of sorrow and grief for Abraham and a

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Speaker 4: final opportunity for him to demonstrate care for her and

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Speaker 4: honor her memory. But understanding that his work on earth

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Speaker 4: was not yet done, we see that Abraham would turn

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Speaker 4: to future planning to secure you a wife for his

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Speaker 4: son Isaac, so that God's plan to bless and grow

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Speaker 4: his family would continue progressing. Today's passage demonstrates great wisdom

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Speaker 4: on the part of Abraham, both in where he sends

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Speaker 4: his servant to look for a mate for Isaac and

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Speaker 4: in what he insists Isaac do as the search is happening,

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Speaker 4: Listen to what he commands his servant to do and

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Speaker 4: why he requires that Isaac remain in the land where

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Speaker 4: they were. Notice also how Abraham's servant goes about finding

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Speaker 4: a suitable partner and how he brings the Lord into

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Speaker 4: the process. Watch also as God works through the process

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Speaker 4: to ensure that Isaac is provided with the right mate.

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Speaker 4: In Rebecca, You'll once again see how God's plans for

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Speaker 4: his people come together, often in unexpected ways and unexpected places.

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Speaker 4: There's God's surprise. Listen now to today's story.

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Speaker 3: Abraham and Sarah lived a long life together. They braved famines,

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Speaker 3: journeyed to new lands, made mistakes, and experienced the faithfulness

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Speaker 3: of God over their marriage and family. Together, they endured

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Speaker 3: heartache and shared in triumph. Yet time is the cruel

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Speaker 3: thief of life, and Sarah, in her old age, had

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Speaker 3: gone to be with her Lord. Abraham ventured to the

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Speaker 3: land of the Hittites and purchased a field and cave

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Speaker 3: there to bury his wife. Filled with sorrow, he said

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Speaker 3: goodbye to Sarah, his truest partner and friend. God had

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Speaker 3: blessed Abraham in all things. He had accumulated wealth, influence, land,

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Speaker 3: and adoration. Yet the death of Sarah reminded him that

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Speaker 3: his life was but a vapor, and soon he would

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Speaker 3: return to the dust from which he came. It was

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Speaker 3: time to consider his son Isaac and securing his future.

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Speaker 3: Abraham desired to find his son a wife as faithful

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Speaker 3: and god fearing as his mother was. This would be

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Speaker 3: a great challenge, since he dwelt in a land where

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Speaker 3: God was not yet known. Canaanites worshiped the gods of

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Speaker 3: the earth, and in vain they pursued no higher purpose

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Speaker 3: besides self pleasure and preservation. Abraham called his most faithful

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Speaker 3: servant to him, the oldest in his household, and his friend.

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Speaker 3: Come and swear an oath to me. Abraham said, swear

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Speaker 3: to the Lord, the God of heaven and earth, that

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Speaker 3: you will find my son a wife among my home

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Speaker 3: country and family. Shall I take your son with me?

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Speaker 3: The servant asked, for a woman might be reluctant to

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Speaker 3: come with me if her potential husband is not there,

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Speaker 3: you shall go to my home country without Isaac. Abraham pressed,

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Speaker 3: God has promised him this land, and he shall not

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Speaker 3: depart from it. If a woman is unwilling to go

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Speaker 3: with you, then I release you from your oath. But

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Speaker 3: I trust God will provide, since he has promised that

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Speaker 3: my son will continue to build a nation with his children.

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Speaker 3: So the servant swore an oath to Abraham by putting

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Speaker 3: his hand on his thigh, which was a form of

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Speaker 3: serious covenant promise. Then the servant departed back to the

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Speaker 3: land of Mesopotamia, to the city of Neor with ten

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Speaker 3: of his master's camels and gifts. After a long journey,

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Speaker 3: the servant had arrived on the outskirts of his master's

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Speaker 3: homeland at the time of evening. He brought his camels

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Speaker 3: to drink from a well. This was the time when

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Speaker 3: women from town came to draw water for their families.

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Speaker 3: The servant looked to God, saying, O Lord, please grant

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Speaker 3: me success today, show love to my master, and show

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Speaker 3: me who might be the wife of his son. Then

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Speaker 3: the servant, knowing God's faithfulness, prayed a strange prayer, saying,

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Speaker 3: I am standing near this spring, and the young women

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Speaker 3: of the city are coming out to draw water. I

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Speaker 3: will ask them for a drink, and whoever also offers

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Speaker 3: to give my camel's water will be the one you

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Speaker 3: have chosen. It may have seemed like a strange prayer,

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Speaker 3: yet the servant knew that a woman who was willing

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Speaker 3: to go the extra mile to bless a stranger would

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Speaker 3: truly be an excellent wife. As he was speaking to

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Speaker 3: the Lord, Rebecca, the daughter of Abraham's brother, came near

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Speaker 3: the spring to draw water. She had an elegance and

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Speaker 3: beauty that stood out among the rest of the women.

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Speaker 3: The dim light of dusk accentuated her beauty, and the

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Speaker 3: servant prayed again that she might be the one for Isaac.

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Speaker 3: He approached her gently and asked, would you mind drawing

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Speaker 3: me some water. Rebecca, even more young and beautiful, looking

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Speaker 3: up close, smiled with kindness emanating from her eyes. Of course, drink,

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Speaker 3: my lord, she said, while drawing him some cold water.

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Speaker 3: The servant thanked her and took a drink with anticipation.

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Speaker 3: As he was drinking, she put her hands together and said,

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Speaker 3: I will draw some water for your camels. It seems

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Speaker 3: like you have come a long way. So she emptied

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Speaker 3: her own jar into a trough near by, and led

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Speaker 3: each camel to drink from it. Ten times. She drew

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Speaker 3: water and carried it and waited for each camel to

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Speaker 3: have its filled. She did so with diligence and speed.

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Speaker 3: The servant watched her work with excitement welling up inside him.

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Speaker 3: Have you done it, lord, the servant thought to himself.

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Speaker 3: When Rebecca finished with the camels, the servant ran to

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Speaker 3: her and adorned her with gifts and gratitude. Please tell

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Speaker 3: me who you are and who your family is, he said,

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Speaker 3: Would they have any room for me to spend the night.

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Speaker 3: Rebecca replied, my father is Bethul and my brother as Laban,

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Speaker 3: and we have plenty of room for you and your

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Speaker 3: camels to stay the night. The man bowed his head

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Speaker 3: to God and worshiped with a grin of a stoneman.

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Speaker 3: He spoke to the lord, saying, blessed are you, Lord,

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Speaker 3: God of my master Abraham. Your steadfast love and faithfulness

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Speaker 3: has orchestrated everything perfectly, and I am simply blessed to

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Speaker 3: watch it unfold. Then the young woman told her household

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Speaker 3: about these things. Lauban hurried to the well to assist

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Speaker 3: the servant and gave his warmest welcome by saying, come

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Speaker 3: on in. I've got the house ready for you, and

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Speaker 3: there's also a place for your camels. They all happily

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Speaker 3: settled in the house and prepared to eat a meal together.

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Speaker 3: Before I eat anything, I need to tell you why

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Speaker 3: I am here, the servants said. I am the servant

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Speaker 3: of Abraham. And the Lord has truly blessed Abraham since

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Speaker 3: last time you saw him. He has become great, with

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Speaker 3: flocks and herds of thousands. He owns land, silver, gold, servants,

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Speaker 3: and all sorts of treasures. Yet his greatest treasure is Isaac,

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Speaker 3: a son he had with his wife Sarah. He was

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Speaker 3: a son given to them in their old age, and

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Speaker 3: God's favor is on him as well. The family sat

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Speaker 3: at the table, astonished by what he was saying, for

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Speaker 3: they knew Abraham from years ago before he had departed.

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Speaker 3: The servant spoke again, saying, I have come here to

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Speaker 3: find my master's son a wife, and I believe Rebecca

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Speaker 3: is the woman God has chosen for him. He then

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Speaker 3: told them all the things he had prayed to God,

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Speaker 3: and Rebecca's actions confirming all that he had prayed for.

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Speaker 3: Laban and his father answered, this is undoubtedly from God.

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Speaker 3: Take her and go let her be the wife of

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Speaker 3: your master's son, as God has made it plain. The

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Speaker 3: servant praised God and blessed the entire household with expensive gifts.

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Speaker 3: The thought of Rebecca leaving saddened her family, and they

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Speaker 3: wanted her to stay a little while longer. But Rebeccah

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Speaker 3: felt the call of God to go. Similarly as God

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Speaker 3: had beckoned Abraham and Sarah to depart from their homeland

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Speaker 3: into something greater, so Rebeccah departed as well. Back home,

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Speaker 3: Isaac went out into the field to meditate. The sun

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Speaker 3: was setting and the warm breeze whistled across the plains.

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Speaker 3: Colors of orange and purple filled the skies, and the

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Speaker 3: clouds moved with the wind. Isaac closed his eyes to pray.

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Speaker 3: He missed his mother. He whispered to God and breathed

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Speaker 3: in the sweet air of the promised land. He then

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Speaker 3: opened his eyes, and in the distance he saw the

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Speaker 3: camels approaching on the horizon. Rebeccah, sitting upon the camels,

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Speaker 3: also lifted her eyes to see a distant figure standing

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Speaker 3: among the fields. She saw him drawing nearer and got

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Speaker 3: off her camel. Who is that man walking in the

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Speaker 3: field to meet us, she asked, It is my master,

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Speaker 3: the servant replied, so rebec Ecca put on her veil

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Speaker 3: to hide her face for the wedding. Isaac came to

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Speaker 3: greet them and was informed about all the things that

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Speaker 3: had taken place. So Isaac brought Rebecca to his home

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Speaker 3: and the two entered a prepared wedding ceremony. He removed

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Speaker 3: her veil and fell madly in love with Rebecca. The

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Speaker 3: two became one as Abraham and Sarah once were. Isaac

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Speaker 3: enjoyed the warm embrace and comfort of his wife, and

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Speaker 3: the two began to build a life with one another.

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Speaker 4: Abraham and Sarah have been through so much together, countless

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Speaker 4: miles of travel, ups and downs in their marriage, and

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Speaker 4: at long last, the joy of a beloved son. Sarah

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Speaker 4: has lived a long life and has fulfilled her purposes.

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Speaker 4: Her time on earth has come to an end, and

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Speaker 4: Abraham grieves her death with great sorrow. Wanting to honor

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Speaker 4: her in her passing, he lavishly provided a resting place

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Speaker 4: for her body, purchasing a field and a cave. But

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Speaker 4: Abraham will not remain stuck in his grief. He understands

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Speaker 4: that there is a time to mourn and a time

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Speaker 4: to grieve, and also a time to look to the future.

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Speaker 4: God has promised to bring him many descendants through Isaac,

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Speaker 4: and for that to happen, he must find a mate

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Speaker 4: for his son. Here we find Abraham acting as a

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Speaker 4: wise father and leader of his family. He could easily

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Speaker 4: have sent his servant to search the region for a

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Speaker 4: young woman for his son, but that could mean a

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Speaker 4: marriage to a pagan woman who knew nothing of his God.

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Speaker 4: That would mean disaster. So he sends his servant out

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Speaker 4: to his homeland far far away. His servant makes a suggestion,

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Speaker 4: why don't I bring Isaac along for the journey so

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Speaker 4: the prospective wife can know I am telling the truth.

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Speaker 4: Once again demonstrating great wisdom, Abraham insists Isaac not leave.

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Speaker 4: God had promised that land to him, and Isaac must

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Speaker 4: stay there to protect his claim and be obedient to God.

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Speaker 4: But there was something more at play here. If Isaac

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Speaker 4: had journeyed far away and found a beautiful young woman

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Speaker 4: to marry, the temptation would be to stay right there,

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Speaker 4: abandoning the land God had given him. By now, Abraham

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Speaker 4: has lived long enough to understand the importance of trusting

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Speaker 4: and obeying God, and of staying the course that God

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Speaker 4: has set. So his servant heads out on his quest.

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Speaker 4: It is notable here that when he arrives in Nahor,

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Speaker 4: the servant prais to God and proposes a way to

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Speaker 4: identify the ideal wife. Look what he says in Genesis

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Speaker 4: twenty four, verses twelve through fourteen. He said, O, Lord,

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Speaker 4: the God of my master Abraham, please grant me success

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Speaker 4: today and show loving kindness to my master Abraham. Behold,

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Speaker 4: I am standing by the spring, and the daughters of

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Speaker 4: the men of the city are coming out to draw water.

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Speaker 4: Now may it be that the girl to whom I say,

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Speaker 4: please let down your jar so that I may drink,

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Speaker 4: and who answers drink and I will water your camels. Also?

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Speaker 4: May she be the one whom you have appointed for

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Speaker 4: your servant, Isaac. And by this I will know that

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Speaker 4: you have shown loving kindness to my master. Why is

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Speaker 4: this so notable? We already see that it is not

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Speaker 4: only Abraham's direct line that is honoring and following the

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Speaker 4: One True God. This servant living in the midst of

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Speaker 4: Abraham Sarah, Isaac and their family have seen their master's

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Speaker 4: worship and trust in God, his obedience and dependence upon God,

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Speaker 4: and this influenced him greatly. So he seeks God, also

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Speaker 4: asking him to find the right wife for his master.

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Speaker 4: He doesn't ask for the most beautiful woman, as one

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Speaker 4: might imagine he would, wanting to impress his master with

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Speaker 4: a striking beauty. For Isaac, his test is looking for

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Speaker 4: a kind heart, a compassionate person, something that will far

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Speaker 4: outlast physical beauty. Waiting by the well, he meets Rebecca.

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Speaker 4: She is beautiful, standing out from all the others. But

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Speaker 4: what wins him over is how she demonstrates great kindness

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Speaker 4: and generosity to a stranger, a foreigner in the land.

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Speaker 4: This is the one, He's sure of it. God is

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Speaker 4: at work in this situation. When the servant tells Rebecca

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Speaker 4: he needs lodging, she welcomes him to her family's house. There,

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Speaker 4: he reveals the purpose of his visit, to the astonishment

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Speaker 4: amazement of his host. He is granted favor and Laban,

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Speaker 4: Rebecca's brother, testifies, this is from God, so far be

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Speaker 4: it from them to stand in the way. The family

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Speaker 4: grants their blessing, and Rebecca agrees to the long journey

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Speaker 4: to meet her future husband, someone that she has never

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Speaker 4: met or seen. They returned to Canaan and Isaac is amazed.

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Speaker 4: He is overjoyed that God has provided him such a

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Speaker 4: kind and beautiful world life. They are married, and God's

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Speaker 4: plan for his purpose and ultimately the redemption of the

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Speaker 4: world continues to move forward. This is a story of

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Speaker 4: God's divine providence, God orchestrating the meeting at the right

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Speaker 4: time between the right people to provide a right mate

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Speaker 4: for Isaac. It is a reminder that God works and

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Speaker 4: does amazing things in our own lives, sometimes even despite

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Speaker 4: unlikely odds and obstacles. What we need to do is

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Speaker 4: to always trust God, believe his promises, and to obey

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Speaker 4: him whatever he asks us to do. Dear Father, thank

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Speaker 4: you for how this story reminds us that you are

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Speaker 4: always at work moving to bless us and provide for

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Speaker 4: our every need. Thank you also for the lesson in

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Speaker 4: grieving and honoring our loved ones that we see from

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Speaker 4: Abraham with Sarah's passing. Help us to trust that you

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Speaker 4: will work in our situation, that we will always bring

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Speaker 4: glory to your life your self and accomplish your purpose's

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Speaker 4: in obedience with our lives. In Jesus' name. Amen, Thank

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Speaker 4: you for listening to today's Bible in a Year podcast.

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Speaker 4: I'm Jack Graham from Dallas, Texas and before we go.

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Speaker 4: I want you to know that I would love to

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Speaker 4: send you my daily devotional to give you fresh encouragement

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Speaker 4: every single day. So visit Jackgraham dot org to sign

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Speaker 4: up for your PowerPoint Today devotional. That's Jack Graham dot

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Speaker 4: org