“[Jacob] had a dream in which he saw a stairway resting on the earth, with its top reaching to heaven, and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it.” Genesis 28:12
Christi
ans like to sing the hymn “Nearer, My God, to Thee.” To many it provides so much meaning. Its beautiful melody and meaningful lyrics have touched countless lives. What many don’t realize is that this song was originally written to tell the story of Jacob and the ladder to heaven. As we read through the lyrics, we notice many phrases that mention the Genesis 28 story. Jacob’s father, Isaac, sent him away to find a wife. While on that trip, Jacob dreamed of a stairway reaching from earth to heaven. Angels were going up and down the stairway. The Lord was standing at the top, telling Jacob that he would watch over him and make his descendants a great nation.
The account of that stairway paints a striking picture of God communing with his child. It shows us that God is not a distant being who is unreachable. Instead the Lord is a loving and intimate God who interacts with his people.
Like Jacob’s ladder, our prayers ascend to heaven, and God responds by descending to us in his Word. Our prayers provide an opportunity to come to God with our needs, desires, and praise. Although God does not necessarily speak verbally to us in response to our prayers, he does come to us through his Word, through our acquaintances and circumstances, and through our thoughts. John 15:7 says, “If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.”
So the next time we speak to God in prayer, we must also stop to listen. Listen to God speaking to us in his Word. Jeremiah 33:3 say, “Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.” Sometimes we must be still and listen to his voice. He has something to say—just to us!
Meditate on the lyrics of “Nearer, My God, to Thee”
Prayer is talking to God.
Meditation is listening to God.
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