Genesis 24:1-16 “And Abraham was old, and well stricken in age: and the Lord had blessed Abraham in all things. And Abraham said unto his eldest servant of his house, that ruled over all that he had, Put, I pray thee, thy hand under my thigh: And I will make thee swear by the Lord, the God of heaven, and the God of the earth, that thou shalt not take a wife unto my son of the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I dwell: But thou shalt go unto my country, and to my kindred, and take a wife unto my son Isaac. And the servant said unto him, Peradventure the woman will not be willing to follow me unto this land: must I needs bring thy son again unto the land from whence thou camest? And Abraham said unto him, Beware thou that thou bring not my son thither again. The Lord God of heaven, which took me from my father’s house, and from the land of my kindred, and which spake unto me, and that sware unto me, saying, Unto thy seed will I give this land; he shall send his angel before thee, and thou shalt take a wife unto my son from thence. And if the woman will not be willing to follow thee, then thou shalt be clear from this my oath: only bring not my son thither again. And the servant put his hand under the thigh of Abraham his master, and sware to him concerning that matter. And the servant took ten camels of the camels of his master, and departed; for all the goods of his master were in his hand: and he arose, and went to Mesopotamia, unto the city of Nahor. And he made his camels to kneel down without the city by a well of water at the time of the evening, even the time that women go out to draw water. And he said, O Lord God of my master Abraham, I pray thee, send me good speed this day, and shew kindness unto my master Abraham. Behold, I stand here by the well of water; and the daughters of the men of the city come out to draw water: And let it come to pass, that the damsel to whom I shall say, Let down thy pitcher, I pray thee, that I may drink; and she shall say, Drink, and I will give thy camels drink also: let the same be she that thou hast appointed for thy servant Isaac; and thereby shall I know that thou hast shewed kindness unto my master. And it came to pass, before he had done speaking, that, behold, Rebekah came out, who was born to Bethuel, son of Milcah, the wife of Nahor, Abraham’s brother, with her pitcher upon her shoulder. And the damsel was very fair to look upon, a virgin, neither had any man known her: and she went down to the well, and filled her pitcher, and came up.”

Text Genesis 2:24 “Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.”

God has put His blessing upon the institution of marriage; the union between a man and a woman! While there are certain practices that have changed since Abraham’s day, there are certain principles within this account that would be worthy of consideration in your search for a mate. There is the parent of the search (vs.1-4). Abraham is deeply concerned that his son marries the right woman. You would be wise to include your parents in the process; for you will most-likely be guided by emotions, and they by the wisdom of experience. If anyone should know what you should look for in a mate; it’s your parents! There is the place of the search (vs.3-4). If you are going to get the right kind of mate, you must look in the right place! You don’t go to the dump to get groceries and you don’t go to the world to get the right kind of mate! God said “Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness?” (II Cor. 6:14). Confine your search to places that promote faith and dedication to the Lord Jesus Christ. There is the prayer of the search (vs. 12-14). Bathe your search process for a mate in prayer. The servant asked God to direct the search and to providentially intervene so that Isaac would get the mate that God wanted him to have. If you want the best person that you could get as a mate for life, let God make the choice. A wise person once said, “Never date a person that you wouldn’t be willing to marry.” On day you’ll be glad you applied these principles when searching for a mate.