Isaac the farmer and well-digger!

Posted in Genesis-BibleTrekToday - January 10, 2009 - 7 Comments

Scriptures for January 10th:  Genesis 25-26

On our farm in Iowa, we had a dug well that was 110 feet deep.  (Not a drilled well!) This well was about 4 feet across and my father and his dad and brothers had helped dig this well and brick it up.  Occasionally, we would set up a tower with a rope and a basket and my dad would be lowered into the well to check the bricks and eliminate roots that were growing in through the wall.  It always amazed me that Dad said he could see the stars from the bottom of that well in broad daylight.

Because of a famine, Isaac camped in the Valley of Gerar in the land of the Philistines and reopened the wells of his father Abraham. The well provided precious water in the desert that enabled crops, animals and humans to have refreshing and life.  They provided a gathering place for communities to get this water daily for their use. (Jesus met the woman at the well in John chapter 4.)  Wells also provided a means to increase a family’s wealth and provide for offspring. They were also a source of quarreling in Isaac’s day.  Rather than fight over the wells, Isaac went to another location and dug a new well.  God blessed him to find a fresh supply of water wherever he went.

Because of a famine, Isaac went to Gerar of the Philistines.  It was there that God gave him the promise of the land and descendants as the stars in the sky as He did to Abraham.  (Genesis 26:2-6) Isaac obeyed and planted crops that year.  God blessed him with a hundred fold return!  It wasn’t his farming skill but God’s blessings that made the difference!  Jealousy caused the Philistines to stop up the wells of Abraham that Isaac had been using.  He moved on and dug new wells and God provided fresh water every time!  God met him at Beersheba and blessed him! (Genesis 26:24-25)  Isaac responded with an altar and another well.

The lesson for us is to dig for water wherever we are planted.  We dig by going to Jesus and asking daily for His will and provision. If we seek the Lord for direction, He will bless us, even in a famine!  When you dig a well and the hole is deep, look up and see the stars and remember God’s promise to Abraham and Isaac!  May the laughter (Isaac–Ha ha ha) of faith fill your life!  May we, like Isaac, leave a legacy of wells of refreshing and blessing everywhere we go! May we re-dig the wells of our godly fathers!

“Isaac’s servants dug in the valley and discovered a well of fresh water there.” Genesis 26:19

Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst.  Indeed, the water I give him will become a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” John 4:13-14

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7 thoughts on “Isaac the farmer and well-digger!”

  1. Pastor John,

    This really blessed me this morning. Lori and I dug a well at our old church and left it fully operational. Now it’s time for us to dig another well at GSC and we look forward to it.
    You do a great job, keep up the good work for the Lord!

    Paul Jr.

  2. PASTOR JOHN, I WANT TO SAY HOW MUCH A BLESSING IT IS TO READ THESE DEVONTIONS WITH YOU EACH DAY MAY GOD CONTINUE TO OPEN UP TP US THROUGH HIS WORD THE WELLS OF HIS EVELASTING WATERS FOR OUR LIFE , OUR SPIRIT AND OUR SOUL. YOU ARE SUCH A BLESSING TO ME AND MY WIFE AND TO GSC. EARL IJAMES

  3. A visitor to this site, very blessed by the blog. Just prayed for direction before I read this, and Wow, we serve a Lord Jesus who is so very faithful. Blessings to you.

    Kimberley Jones

  4. Dear Kimberley, Thanks for your visit! My goal this year is to journey through the Bible with a post each day on that day’s reading. Sunday’s devotions will be reflection on the week’s journey! May the Lord walk with you as you journey with Him! P. John

  6. Dear Rufor, Greetings! Glad you found my blog site and are interested in the Bible. I am a pastor in Owensboro, Kentucky. I felt that the Lord was directing me to reach out in a different way this year by leading my congregation on a journey through the Bible. I am attempting to write each day and give a short devotion on a part of the reading. I read six days and then do a day of rest and reflection. Each Sunday I will be preaching on a different book of the Bible and on Wednesday nights, I will expand that view to incorporate it into a current worldview based in Scripture.

    What information did you want or need that was not in this post? I may not have the answer but will pray, read and seek to help. God bless you on your journey! In His Love, Pastor John

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