Classic Episode - God Saw She Was Unloved - Leah

Today's classic episode is God Saw She Was Unloved. We all want to be accepted nurtured and loved. There is one who loves unconditionally, accepts us as we are and heals our broken hearts. He is the eternal one who sees into our hurt and pain and brings healing and honour. As you listen be blessed, empowered and transformed in Jesus name.

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Transcript

00:00 Intro music and voice over.

Welcome to jesus loves the world podcast. For more information and free resources visit our website jesuslovestheworld.info Be blessed empowered and transformed in Jesus’ name! 

00:20 Speaker 

Today's classic episode is God Saw She Was Unloved. We all want to be accepted nurtured and loved. We all want to be accepted, nurtured and loved, especially from a mother. Yet in this world there are many without a loving mother in their life. There are so many broken hearts. 

Yet there is one who loves unconditionally, accepts us as we are and heals our broken hearts. He is the eternal one who sees into our hurt and pain and brings healing and honour.

Let us journey together through the Eternal One’s love story to us, the Bible. Where the Eternal one, God Himself, saw a woman who was emotionally hurt and feeling great pain. Her name was Leah.

Genesis 29:31-35 When the Lord saw that Leah was unloved, He opened her womb; but Rachel was barren. So Leah conceived and bore a son, and she called his name Reuben; for she said, “The Lord has surely looked on my affliction. Now therefore, my husband will love me.” Then she conceived again and bore a son, and said, “Because the Lord has heard that I am unloved, He has therefore given me this son also.” And she called his name Simeon. She conceived again and bore a son, and said, “Now this time my husband will become attached to me, because I have borne him three sons.” Therefore his name was called Levi. And she conceived again and bore a son, and said, “Now I will praise the Lord.” Therefore she called his name Judah. Then she stopped bearing.

Leah was unloved by her husband. She lived in a culture where there was enormous pressure to have a boy child, as they carry the bloodline. She thought that if she could have a boy she would be respected and loved by her husband. She wanted a boy child for one reason only, to be loved. 

This desire to be loved is not necessarily a bad one, as we were all created out of love. God in His great love chose to create. He didn’t need to create humanity, yet He chose to create humanity because He so loves. 

Everyone has a desire to be loved. Yet when we look to others to satisfy that desire that only God can give, that desire can become a controlling destructive force in our life. The desire is not only controlling, but relationships and circumstances are manipulated by selfish desires to get what self wants. 

Yet God in His unending love and amazing grace saw Leah was unloved. Not only unloved but hated by her husband and even her own tribe. 

God saw Leah and reached down to her lowest point of need. 

The first aspect that we discover about God from His journey with Leah is: God sees our brokenness.

So Leah conceived and bore a son. She acknowledged that God had seen her broken heart of being rejected and hated by her own. Therefore she named her child Reuben, which means ‘look a son.’ Leah thought now that she had a male child, her husband would love her.

Sadly Leah was trapped in her brokenness and in bondage to her desire to be loved. She became a slave to that desire. Doing anything to control and manipulate to get what she wanted

Her husband Jacob was also trapped and in bondage to his hate for Leah. As a result his hate would dominate him and her to get what his self wanted. 

Both are hurting and have broken hearts. They are both trapped in their brokenness and selfishness of their own flesh.

So Leah conceived again. This time her response is, ‘God heard that am unloved and gave me another son.’

God saw Leah’s brokenness and heard her cry.

The second aspect that we discover about God from His journey with Leah is: God hears our cries.

The whole community probably talked about how Leah’s husband hated her and resented her. She must have been aware of the gossip. This second child Leah names Simeon, which means ‘heard.’

Sadly as we read on Leah discovered another boy child could not change her husband or heal her broken heart.

Yet again Leah conceived another son. She still holds onto the hurt and rejection. Leah said, surely this time my husband will be emotionally and physically attached to me. She named her third son Levi, which means ‘attached.’

All three sons are given names according to the rejection of their mother. So each son will also carry the burden of their mother. Every time they would hear their names, they would be reminded of the broken heart of their mother.

Then a fourth time Leah conceived another son. This time her response was very different. Through surrender of her desire to be loved by her husband, she could let go of the hurt, rejection and pain. No longer were they to determine her identity or control her. The power they had over her life and her actions was broken through surrendering them to God. 

Leah declared, ‘now I will praise the Lord!’ She received a revelation that she could not control others or force someone to love her. But most of all the realisation that her need to be accepted and loved could only be satisfied by God. For this she will praise Him. 

In His unending love and amazing grace God reached down to Leah’s point of need. 

He knows the need we have to be accepted and loved for He created humanity to receive love and give love. 

God revealed to Leah His perfect love for her and honoured her. As a result she became respected by her community from generation to generation. 

God chose Leah from before the creation of the world. From her fourth boy came the tribe of Judah. Through this tribe God chose to become one of us. In human form, still fully divine, He lived, died and rose from the dead. Jesus is His name! He is the lion from the tribe of Judah, the victorious king of all kings, the son of God, faithful and true. 

Today God continues to honour Leah, as her story and journey with God is included in His love story the Bible.

The third aspect that we discover about God from His journey with Leah is:  God sees our brokenness. He hears our cries and heals our broken hearts.

I know the emotional pain and brokenness that rejection can cause. 

My mother, who is now with our Lord, suffered the same rejection as Leah. My father had an ongoing relationship with another woman. As a result my mother started to believe the lies of satan. The thoughts that she must not be pretty enough, or not good enough. Or that it was her fault and that there must be something wrong with her. Such lies as she had done something wrong to deserve this. 

Lies, lies, lies, all lies.

The relationship between my father and mother became abusive. Each one would be fighting and manipulating the other for power and control over the other.

The emotional trauma was immense and sent my mother into a deep dark place. At that time, she  was a disciple of Jesus, yet she became lost in a mental and emotional hell for 20 years.

Then one day! 

She admitted that she needed healing. Needed to be set free from this emotional and mental hell. So she asked me to pray. I reminded her that when I was a child and sick she would pray for me. We smiled. It was a very tender moment. 

Praise God, thank you Jesus, my mother’s mind and broken heart was healed. She could finally let go of the hurt, the unforgiveness, the rejection, but most of all the lies of satan.

I thank God that I was blessed with a few years with my mother’s mental health back in this world before she went to be with our Lord. I remember after Jesus restored her mind, I said with tears, I have been given back my mother. She had taught me the scriptures at an early age. So it was very special to share the sermons and teachings with her.

In those final years I asked her, ‘mumma if you had to describe God in one word what would it be?’ She replied, without hesitation and a glow on her face, ‘everything.’ 

Everything. When we can truely say Jesus’ love is enough for me, that’s He is our everything, then we are free to receive love and to love others unconditionally. Truely free from selfish desires, abusive relationships and the lies of satan.

I also was in an abusive relationship with a friend. They would withdraw their love if I didn’t do what they wanted or expected. I came to realise this was emotional blackmail. One incident I remember was they were very angry and verbally attacked me. Each night after that horrible time, I would relive that moment in my sleep, waking up in tears. I said Heavenly Father, ‘take this away from me. Let me wake up with a song of worship in my heart for you.’ He said, ‘I have given you the power and authority of my Son to say no to this. Surrender the desire to be loved by her and receive My healing.’ I surrendered that desire for them to love me and said no to that having power over me. 

That night I went to sleep. No dreams. I woke up with a song of worship in my heart. The controlling force of that abusive relationship was broken. I received His healing touch, letting His love go deep, deep into my brokenness. Putting back the pieces. Raising us up to life.

I too can say Jesus’ love is more than enough for me. Jesus is my everything. Each day as I surrender my self and let Him pour into me, I receive a greater revelation of who He is and what He has done and will do. I receive more of His love. As a result of His love in me, I can love others unconditionally.

It is through the daily surrender of self and receiving a greater revelation of His love for me and in me, that I have been transformed. My relationships have become rich in equal love, where nothing of my flesh has power over me. It has no hold over me and no place in my life. 

God does not approve of abuse or betrayal. No one deserves to be abused. Yet in His great love He came to set us free from the ways of humanity.

So today, may we take a moment to surrender any brokenness, rejection or emotional hurt that has taken hold. 

If you feel unloved, God sees you, hears your cry and wants to fill that need. Be your everything.

Jesus said in Matthew 11:28-30 Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”

The invitation is for all who are troubled and in need. Those who are heavy laden. That is weighed down with anxiety, especially spiritually. The burden of being a good Christian by trying to be good. Instead of surrendering of self and letting God transform our hearts and minds. 

Emotional hurt is wearisome, debilitating and can overpower our reality. Abuse, unequal relationships, rejection, isolation, feeling unloved are a chain that binds together our identity with that thing. It can take a hold and corrupt not only how we see ourselves, but also how we see God. 

Emotional hurt is a burden we are not meant to carry, it is something that needs to be let go of. In surrender the power of the hurt and the pain deep in ones heart is broken.

In the time of the hurt and rejection we can feel distant from God. Yet He is never distant. Even when rejected by those who are supposed to be closest to us, God never rejects us. Each one has a purpose and plan. We are all highly valued.

Humanity is driven by selfish desire. Jesus is compelled by unconditional love. 

He says to us today, come all who are willing, weighed down and burdened. Surrender, let go of that situation. No longer seeing yourself attached to that thing. Being set free to receive Jesus’ healing. Identifying yourself with Jesus and His victory.

Jesus gives eternal rest. He is the only one who can truely satisfy. He is the well that never runs dry. The only place where we can receive refreshing, renewing and healing. A perfect love that only He can give.

God sees our brokenness. God hears our cries. God heals our broken hearts.

19:40 Outro music and voice over. 

For more information and free resources visit our website jesuslovestheworld.info Be blessed empowered and transformed in Jesus’ name!