“Once when Jacob was cooking a stew, Esau came in from the field exhausted. He said to Jacob, “Let me eat some of that red stuff, because I’m exhausted.” … Jacob replied, “First sell me your birthright.” “Look,” said Esau, “I’m about to die, so what good is a birthright to me?”… So he swore to Jacob and sold his birthright to him.” – Genesis 25:29-32

Esau was hungry, so he traded away the blessing. He would have received twice the inheritance as his younger brother, but he gave it away for a temporary pleasure.

What do we trade away?

Those who refuse the Lordship of Christ trade eternity with Him, for the pleasure of being the god of their own lives on earth. But even those of us who are His often find ourselves in the trading business.

We trade our health for the pleasures of certain food, our purity for the pleasure of lust, our financial security for the pleasure of materialism beyond our means.

We give up the blessing of humility for the right to be right.

We trade the gift that is the Church, the community of believers, for the right to live in isolation, free from the responsibility of submission to others.

We trade our freedom in for what promises to give us peace, but never delivers.

And like Esau, we are giving away what is greater for what is lesser. We are trading down.

Lord, help us be unwilling to trade anything You give us for something this world is offering. May we recognize our hunger for the lesser things, and clearly see what satisfying that hunger will cost us.

God, may Your people hunger for You more than anything else.