She conceived again, and when she gave birth to a son she said, “This time I will praise the Lord.” So she named him Judah.^[a] Then she stopped having children.

Genesis 29:35

The story of Leah is interesting.

She was not supposed to be in the bridal suite, or so Jacob thought the morning after his honeymoon. So, how did Leah find herself in the arms of the bridegroom instead of her little sister, Rachel? And how could she expect to be loved by a man her father had so rudely deceived on his wedding night? Yet, that’s what Leah craved for throughout her marriage.

Her father used her as a pawn to get what he wanted from Jacob – fourteen years of tending his flock. Jacob dreamed of his wedding night as he worked seven years for the hand of Rachel in marriage. But to his disappointment, he found Leah in his arms the morning after his wedding. So, for seven more years, Jacob worked to get Rachel back in marriage. How then could he love Leah?

So Leah sought refuge in childbirth. “Surely my husband will love me now,” she said after the birth of Reuben, her first son. Disappointed, Leah kept hope alive. She gave birth to her second son and named him Simeon and her third, Levi. Each time, Leah hoped for Jacob’s love because of the children. “Now, at last, my husband will become attached to me because I have borne him three sons.”

Poor woman! Leah was crying for love from the wrong source. Her sister Rachel had it all from their husband, with nothing to spare.

Soon, Leah realized that children couldn’t cut it. For though Rachel couldn’t have children, Jacob couldn’t have enough of her. So, when her fourth came, Leah named him, Judah, for she said, “This time I will praise the Lord.”

“Then she stopped having children” (Gen. 29:35).

It was as if God was waiting for Leah to turn to Him for love rather than Jacob. Though, she finally found love, it was not in Jacob, but in the God, who blesses with children (Ps. 127:3), and she rejoiced and praised Him.

Your heart may be looking for love from somebody. You have suffered disappointment countless number of times. God is waiting for you to lift your eyes to Him. He is Love, and through Christ Jesus, He can delight your heart with much of it.

So, can you turn to God through Jesus for the love you’re looking for? He is the love Son of God. He will overwhelm you with His love. Then you can become an instrument of His love to those who are groping in the darkness of deceptive assumption like Leah did.