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Just because God had changed Jacob's name to Israel doesn't mean he's perfect. No more than we are perfect just because we are saved. We still fall. We still make mistakes, but we should never justify them. Still it makes it hard to throw the first stone.

All of this mess could have been avoided if Jacob had just obeyed God. He wasn't even supposed to be there. He was supposed to go home, but his fear of his brother kept him away. Of course fear did seem to run in his family. Both Abraham and Isaac put their wives honor in danger to save their own skin. He didn't really have a good role model.

If he had been a good father, he would never allowed Dinah to leave without protection. He also would have demanded some kind of justice for his daughter's sake. His inaction led to his son's overreaction. There are always consequences for not following God.

I was super close to leaving God's will, but I kept close to the leadership and fellowship of God's people. It felt like I was just barely hanging on. Now, I'm back where I belong and don't ever want to leave again. I came way to close to disaster.