My Jacob’s Ladder
“What’s more, I am with you, and I will protect you wherever you go. One day I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have finished giving you everything I have promised you.” ~ Genesis 28:15
This chapter in Genesis tells about Jacob’s journey as he left home to get away from his brother’s fury. He was uncertain of his future and carrying the weight of the family conflict. One night, as he slept with a stone for a pillow, he dreamt of a ladder reaching from earth to heaven with angels ascending and descending on it. God came to him and made a powerful promise. He said He would be with Jacob, protect him, and fulfill His what He promised him. In that moment, Jacob knew that no matter where he is or how uncertain things seem, God was present and working out His plan.
I have been walking through a personal crisis for about two and a half years with one of my children. I’m not ready to talk about the details, but ever since they were born, God has given me scriptures and promised about their life to know they were made to be an overcomer. Where we are right now, it is mostly all I can think about and I am constantly putting my faith in God to work in that life by thanking Him for His promises and taking authority over the enemy and his influence in the situation. I have seen progress in the last couple years but is it slow in my eyes. I do know that God is working in many details and lives through His working in this struggle so I know that is one of the reasons it seems to be taking so long for breakthrough.
The other day, I took a look back in some of my journals from five even ten years ago. Honestly, I was looking for some of the things I wrote down that God had given me about this very situation. As I read through many of the entries, I was so encouraged by what I had written. Even though many of my writings were not about what I was currently looking for encouragement in, I found so much joy and encouragement seeing what God had already brought me through. Each day I looked at had words about something I was going through and areas that were on my heart for God to work in then. Those journals are like gold to me because now that I was looking back, I could remember how He had done such an amazing work in every single case, simply because I was trusting in Him and doing my best to believe and follow His leading.
As I read today’s passage, I thought, Sure! That’s wonderful for Jacob, but where’s my ‘Jacob’s Ladder? Almost instantly, my mind went back to those journals. They are my ladder, my way of seeing heaven touch earth in my own life. Just as Jacob’s dream reminded him that God was with him, my journals remind me of His presence and faithfulness through every storm. When I look back, I see the God who carried me then, and I know He is carrying me now. That’s why I am so passionate about encouraging others to keep a journal.
You may be in a similar place right now. Perhaps you are facing a new job, a move, a relationship change, or a ministry opportunity, and the unknowns feel intimidating. Like Jacob, you might be wondering how it will all work out. God’s promise to Jacob is His promise to you that He will be with you, He will protect you, and He will complete the work He has started in your life. Write it down and journal every encouraging thing you experience through your struggles so that even when you cannot see the full picture, you can trust that His presence and faithfulness goes before you, His hand is upon you, and His plan will not fail. When you keep track of His faithfulness, your journal will become your personal “Jacob’s Ladder,” anchoring you in hope when you face future storms.
Here are some steps you can take today to start your Ladder:
- Start your day with a reminder from God’s Word that He is with you.
- Keep a journal of past moments when God has provided or guided you.
- Pray specifically for peace in the areas that cause you anxiety.
- Look for small ways God is showing His presence in your daily life.
- Take one step of faith today, even if you do not see the whole path.
Today I want to encourage you to hold on to the promise that God is with you wherever you go. His presence is your greatest assurance, and His faithfulness is unshakable. You may not have all the answers, but you have the One who knows the end from the beginning walking right beside you. Keep moving forward with confidence, knowing He will keep every promise He has spoken over your life.
Today’s scripture reading: Genesis 28
1 So Isaac called for Jacob, blessed him, and said, “You must not marry any of these Canaanite women.
2 Instead, go at once to Paddan-aram, to the house of your grandfather Bethuel, and marry one of your uncle Laban’s daughters.
3 May God Almighty bless you and give you many children. And may your descendants multiply and become many nations!
4 May God pass on to you and your descendants the blessings he promised to Abraham. May you own this land where you are now living as a foreigner, for God gave this land to Abraham.”
5 So Isaac sent Jacob away, and he went to Paddan-aram to stay with his uncle Laban, his mother’s brother, the son of Bethuel the Aramean.
6 Esau knew that his father, Isaac, had blessed Jacob and sent him to Paddan-aram to find a wife, and that he had warned Jacob, “You must not marry a Canaanite woman.”
7 He also knew that Jacob had obeyed his parents and gone to Paddan-aram.
8 It was now very clear to Esau that his father did not like the local Canaanite women.
9 So Esau visited his uncle Ishmael’s family and married one of Ishmael’s daughters, in addition to the wives he already had. His new wife’s name was Mahalath. She was the sister of Nebaioth and the daughter of Ishmael, Abraham’s son.
10 Meanwhile, Jacob left Beersheba and traveled toward Haran.
11 At sundown he arrived at a good place to set up camp and stopped there for the night. Jacob found a stone to rest his head against and lay down to sleep.
12 As he slept, he dreamed of a stairway that reached from the earth up to heaven. And he saw the angels of God going up and down the stairway.
13 At the top of the stairway stood the Lord, and he said, “I am the Lord, the God of your grandfather Abraham, and the God of your father, Isaac. The ground you are lying on belongs to you. I am giving it to you and your descendants.
14 Your descendants will be as numerous as the dust of the earth! They will spread out in all directions—to the west and the east, to the north and the south. And all the families of the earth will be blessed through you and your descendants.
15 What’s more, I am with you, and I will protect you wherever you go. One day I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have finished giving you everything I have promised you.”
16 Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I wasn’t even aware of it!”
17 But he was also afraid and said, “What an awesome place this is! It is none other than the house of God, the very gateway to heaven!”
18 The next morning Jacob got up very early. He took the stone he had rested his head against, and he set it upright as a memorial pillar. Then he poured olive oil over it.
19 He named that place Bethel (which means “house of God”), although it was previously called Luz.
20 Then Jacob made this vow: “If God will indeed be with me and protect me on this journey, and if he will provide me with food and clothing,
21 and if I return safely to my father’s home, then the Lord will certainly be my God.
22 And this memorial pillar I have set up will become a place for worshiping God, and I will present to God a tenth of everything he gives me.”
Journal Prompt:
- Write about a situation you are currently facing where you feel uncertain.
- Ask God to make His presence known to you in a personal way and to give you courage to trust Him through each step.
The Daily Dose 