In the Bible we learn of six women who teach us about remaining hopeful and faithful in matters of motherhood. Here is the next story.

The third righteous example is Rachel, Jacob’s wife. She too was barren. In Genesis 30:1 Rachel declared, “Give me children or else I die.” The scriptures also record that she envied her sister Leah. These are natural emotions that come when there some blessing we desire so much. It is through the Atonement that we can learn how to trust in God’s plan and timing. The Atonement also can help us overcome the natural man within us that focuses on these destructive emotions. Rachel wanted to bear children so badly that she felt like she would die. I too have felt this range of emotions. It is a difficult battle. But if we choose to allow the Lord into our hearts, it can help strengthen that personal relationship with Him. Later, in verse 22, it records that the Lord “remembered Rachel, and God hearkened to her, and opened her womb.”

The Lord knows us, hears our cries, and in process of time, can bless us with those things we need. Note that Rachel’s firstborn son is Joseph, from whom Ephraim and Manasseh come. It is all a matter of the Lord’s timing. Great blessings come from Rachel’s seed. Rachel’s reproach had been turned into great blessings and posterity. Rachel’s story reminds us that our lives are in God’s hands, and we are to continue to look to Him for help.

From all the women in this collection of stories, we see that there were divine purposes in their waiting, such as: personal refinement, spiritual strengthening, faith in the Lord, and righteous children coming at the right time to fulfill their own roles and responsibilities.