Chapter 26 of Genesis, describes a good portion of Isaac's life and legacy. We see many similarities between Abraham the father of faith and his son Isaac. The opening verse of the chapter evokes the memory of the famine in Abraham’s time. In this chapter we can see the parallels of their lives beautifully portrayed. Both men had similar callings, both experienced the struggle of famine and responded to the hardships of famine in the same way, both had beautiful wives who struggled to conceive. Isaac followed his father’s example of claiming his wife was his sister for the purpose of trying to save his own life.. Both were the envy of Kings. Both did follow God's instructions devotedly. Both were blessed for their willingness to follow God.

Abraham and Isaac were well diggers. They engaged in the activity of exposing water, which represents life, energy, and goodness, beneath everything. Abraham’s approach was far broader, whereas Isaac’s was more deliberate, but it was the same pursuit: to dig beneath the surface and find goodness.

In today's theme scripture we see how God continually prospers Isaac despite his character flaws, Isaac demonstrated obedience to God's plan for his life, Isaac was patience and demonstrated his ability to be a peacemaker, when the Philistines provoked Isaac’s men and treated them unfairly after Isaac dug out a well, they moved in and claimed it as their own. 

Instead of pridefully fighting or demanding that his rights be satisfied, Isaac wisely saw a simpler and more peaceful course of action. That is, he just moved away and dug out another well. This happened twice in Isaac's life and both times he let it go. This demonstrates a lot of wisdom and humility on Isaac's behalf.

Dear Heavenly Father,

We bless Your Name and thank You for Your mercy and grace, like Isaac, we are all flawed and have all fallen short from the measure and example of Your son Jesus, but like Isaac, teach us to walk in humbleness, keeping with Your sovereign word as our one true example on how to live a life that honors You. May we look for the goodness of Your provision and wait patiently when our life circumstances don’t go the way we expect. We pray for a heart of obedience and the ability to be a peacemaker in the time we live in just like Isaac and Your son Jesus. May we live a life of righteousness and sanctification daily, striving to let Your Holy Spirit mold us to the image of Your choice, to leave a legacy of blessings to our generations. In the Name of Jesus, we pray. Amen.

Like Isaac we also need to learn from the lessons that life teaches us. Learn to take the good with the bad, learn to see goodness in God’s creation, to admit when we have fallen short, and to be patient when we are not seeing God moving in our favor. May we learn to walk in obedience in our current seasons of life. Above all, may we learn to be peacemakers. Matthew 5:9 says, God blesses those who work for peace, for they will be called the children of God.