Do you remember your first car? I had an AMC Matador. The commercials said it was magnificent. I was not convinced. In the late seventies and early eighties, our family owned a series of “muscle cars.” One of my brothers drove a Gran Torino Brougham straight out of the Starsky and Hutch television series. My other brother drove a Mercury Cougar with retractable light covers. Did I mention I drove a Matador. My therapist says I am almost over this!
Transportation has always mattered. Camels play an important role in this story. Abraham’s servant and his men brought them over. Rebekah watered them. Her brother Laban made sure the camels were fed. When the time came to return to Abraham and Isaac, Rebekah and her attendants rode the camels back to her new home.
How did Isaac feel about all of this? He had lost his mother Sarah. Meditating in the field he looked up and saw the camels coming. Rebekah covered herself with a veil. The servant told Isaac the story and he married Rebekah. She became his wife and he loved her. Their marriage comforted him in the loss of his mother.
God worked in this process. He directed the servant, Rebekah, her family, and Isaac. Often when I go to wedding receptions, I hear parents say, “I prayed for my child’s spouse before we ever met them.” This is the story Genesis tells. Abraham cared. The servant prayed. Isaac prayed. God answered. My friend Calvin Miller summed it up: “and the Camels smiled.”
