12 When Isaac planted his crops that year, he harvested a hundred times more grain than he planted, for the Lord blessed him. 13 He became a very rich man, and his wealth continued to grow. 14 He acquired so many flocks of sheep and goats, herds of cattle, and servants that the Philistines became jealous of him. 15 So the Philistines filled up all of Isaac’s wells with dirt. These were the wells that had been dug by the servants of his father, Abraham.

16 Finally, Abimelech ordered Isaac to leave the country. “Go somewhere else,” he said, “for you have become too powerful for us.” 17 So Isaac moved away to the Gerar Valley, where he set up their tents and settled down. 18 He reopened the wells his father had dug, which the Philistines had filled in after Abraham’s death. Isaac also restored the names Abraham had given them.

Genesis 26:12-18 (NLT)

God’s blessing

Isaac continued living in the land of Gerar, the land of the Philistines, and God tremendously blessed him financially. Could you imagine? You plant a bushel of grain and get back 100 bushels. You invest in the bank and get 100x return in one year! Like playing Monopoly, he used the profit to purchase more assets.

Blessing become liability

All these blessings and accumulation of possessions became a threat to the Philistines. They got jealous and plugged up his wells so his livestock couldn’t drink. “In some seasons of the year, human or animal life could not be sustained without water from wells. These wells were not a luxury, but a necessity.” (enduringword.com) Eventually, the king ordered Isaac to leave. They couldn’t handle his affluence. They perceived he was becoming a threat. Things were not so well after all.

Problem resolution

How did Isaac respond? Did he go to war with Abimelech? Did he even complain to him? Nope. He listened to his command and moved! Isn’t that a wimpy response?! Well, he avoided strife and didn’t burn any bridges. He knew God was blessing him and that He would do that no matter where he lived – as long as he stayed in the land, in God’s will. He didn’t flee in fear but made a calculated decision of what would be best and did it.

Then Isaac’s servants unstopped the wells and everything was peaceful…for now. 

RЯeflection

• How do you respond to conflict? It doesn’t have to be just “fight or flight”. There are usually other manageable options such as what Isaac did.
• Is God blessing you abundantly? Not that we should expect it but He surely can and does bless His children. The blessing may not be material. Take some time to count your blessings. You will be surprised.