Brenda Miller

Set Your House in Order . . . Brenda Miller

Come and drink from the well of reconciliation. In the book of Genesis, God hovers over the watery depths and speaks His fixed order into creation. The book of Genesis contains numerous accounts of the activities of God at water wells. The scenes picture the wells as gathering places for refreshment and survival, like the account of Hagar; for seeking marital relationships, as in the stories of Rebekah and Rachel. Like Bethel, altars established at dig sites of wells institute the worship of God. Praise, thanksgiving and reconciliation, as between Isaac and Abimelech, restore God's moral, social, and cosmic order. The history of Jacob and Esau and Joseph and his family digs into human relationships and the priority God places on keeping His family and the community's order maintained and reconciled. God inspired Genesis to be humanity's instruction manual for building and restoring families and relationships according to His Divine Order.