Instant Temporary Gratification

On the day that Esau sold his birthright to his brother, he would not have thought it would mean coming second place to his younger brother. Esau had come from the field and was exhausted. He found Jacob cooking stew and asked him for some. Jacob being cunning asked Esau to sell him his birthright for the food. Esau did not think much of it, in fact the bible says he despised his birthright; and so to satisfy his hunger, he sold his birthright to Jacob (Genesis 25: 29-34). I wonder if this decision made a leeway for Jacob, when he later manages to take what should have been Esau's.

Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. 1 Peter 5:8

The enemy does know how to time. What happens when we are controlled by our strong desires, emotions or need for something...When our desires are overwhelming and we want what we want at that very moment, it is hard to think straight, on a sober mind. At that time our focus is on satisfying that need. Just like Esau, the consequences of our actions or what we may have to lose, does not count much. It may actually be undervalued. In other times it may mean making less "profit" than we would have made if we had thought things through. We make a math that will only make sense at that particular time, but with good thought and  a clear mind, it's not really a decision that we may so easily make.

In a moment Esau lost the place that he had as a first born and the privileges that came with it. To him it may have been just a birthright with no value as seen in Genesis 25: 32 "..Look I am about to die; so what is this birthright to me?"; poorly calculated consequences. However, when he made the decision for temporary and instant satisfaction he lost much. Later, Jacob is able to trick his father into blessing him thinking that it was Esau. Through the blessing, he had made Esau second place and Jacob his master, for the rest of his life and for generations to come. Well, Esau was blessed with a nation, but it was in no way comparable to Jacob's blessing. A father of 12 tribes, what would become Israel, The People of God.

Esau was angry that Jacob had tricked him twice, though to me the first time doesn't really seem like trickery; it was pretty much out there..just saying. Quick temporary satisfaction is a decision made from a "blurred vision". Sometimes when we find ourselves in situations that put pressure on us, so that we can only see what we want to see, it may be good to just stop for a moment and walk away if necessary. Another way to overcome such situations in my experience, is to avoid reaching the point when we know it will probably be hard to turn around or walk away. It is good to know and learn our weaknesses, especially in cases where one may have already gone through a similar situation before. Above all,

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding;" Proverbs 3:5

Beautiful song "The One" by Pita