Leah

or "The Stone the Builders Rejected"

Now the LORD saw that Leah was unloved, he opened her womb
Genesis 29:31

Jacob was a weak-eyed man,
never stopped to wonder
where his breakfast came from,
or why Leah would get up hours before dawn,
never noticed the way her laugh filled the room,
or the way his family smiled when they heard it.
Jacob never recognized the grace
he received by Laban’s deception.

Those nights Jacob spent
with the pretty one, the Lord came
to sit with Leah, to enjoy her company,
and when possible comfort her.
Common-sense affirmations,
almost cliché—but credible from Him:
“you should be cherished,”
“Jacob doesn’t see
the blessing he has.”

Leaning close,
He told her secrets:
she was the favored one,
there was surprise
yet unimagined
hidden in her.

Leah treasured all these things,
and pondered them in her heart.