The story of Jacob's Ladder is written in the book of Genesis.  Jacob, a grasping sort of character who conned his brother into giving him his inheritance, is fleeing his brother's rage and going to a far-off land to live with his uncle.  One night while he's on the run, Jacob puts his head on a rock for a pillow and tries to sleep.  In a dream, he looks up and sees "a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven.  And behold, the angels of God were ascending and descending on it!"  From the top of the ladder, God tells him that He will keep the promises He's already made to Jacob's father, and will fulfill them through Jacob and his sons.  (Not that Jacob deserves this grace, the cad!  It's more about God's character than Jacob's.)  When Jacob wakes up, he's stirred to make a monument to this special place where Heaven touched Earth, and he promises to serve God as long as God keeps His promise (and, oh--lets him return home safely without getting murdered).

Jacob's path back home isn't an easy one, but that's another day's story.  For today, we have the story of Jacob's ladder, a symbol of God's choice to make connections with creation, and to reach down into our reality and effect it. 

Jacob's Ladder is also the name of a string game, a wooden toy, and a quilt block.  Guess which one this post is about?