Stolen Baggage

Genesis 31:17-20 KJV

Then Jacob rose up, and set his sons and his wives upon camels;

And he carried away all his cattle, and all his goods which he had gotten, the cattle of his getting, which he had gotten in Padanaram, for to go to Isaac his father in the land of Canaan.

And Laban went to shear his sheep: and Rachel had stolen the images that were her father's.

And Jacob stole away unawares to Laban the Syrian, in that he told him not that he fled.

Since God was obviously directing his return home, Jacob had no need to steel “away unawares to Laban.” This move was a part of his old deceptive nature and only led to more trouble. Leaving so hastily meant leaving with some baggage; Rachel stole her father's idols.

It is the nature of man that,

• When we leave things in a hurry
• When we leave places the wrong way
• When we leave to avoid some unpleasantness

we always take baggage we would have been best to leave behind.

Life is always in a growing state. Growth means transition. Transition means change. Change of place can be a part of that transition. But when the change happens improperly things on the outside change but nothing changes on the inside. Only when we confront what is going on can we ever really deal with basic issues and see real, internal life change.

Running from problems will always mean carrying baggage we just don't need.