Reading – Genesis 32:22-31

During the night Jacob got up and took his two wives, his two servant wives, and his eleven sons and crossed the Jabbok River with them. After taking them to the other side, he sent over all his possessions.

This left Jacob all alone in the camp, and a man came and wrestled with him until the dawn began to break. When the man saw that he would not win the match, he touched Jacob’s hip and wrenched it out of its socket. Then the man said, “Let me go, for the dawn is breaking!” But Jacob said, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.” “What is your name?” the man asked. He replied, “Jacob.” “Your name will no longer be Jacob,” the man told him. “From now on you will be called Israel, because you have fought with God and with men and have won.” “Please tell me your name,” Jacob said.

“Why do you want to know my name?” the man replied. Then he blessed Jacob there. Jacob named the place Peniel (which means “face of God”), for he said, “I have seen God face to face, yet my life has been spared.” The sun was rising as Jacob left Peniel, and he was limping because of the injury to his hip.

The Bible shows us two amazingly intimate ‘one to one’ meetings that Jacob has with God, the first is in 28:10–17, but in this passage we’ve seen Jacob spending the whole night wrestling with God, wrestling because he is insistent that God would bless him, so desperate for a blessing that he will not let go, that is, not until he is blessed.

I wonder do you hesitate to wrestle with God over things dear to you? Jacob didn’t think twice, and I believe that we shouldn’t either. You see being a follower of Jesus is not just about being saved, but it’s about pursuing God, in His word and face to face in prayer.

After this encounter with God, Jacob is left physically weaker with a dodgy hip but in reality, he is stronger… he is stronger because he was blessed by God. He goes on in his life better equipped to deal with his past, his present and his future, because he has wrestled over some difficult things with God, and in wrestling he was changed, changed to be ready, able and willing to accept God’s blessing, accept God’s leading and most importantly to accept that God’s plan and God’s will are supreme over everything and God’s love and justice is without question.

Reflect: Jacob wrestled with God… God won and Jacob was blessed – just think that through as you go through the day!

Act: Take hold of God today and wrestle in prayer with Him, maybe it’s a break-through that’s not coming, perhaps it’s just the courage to keep on track, maybe it’s a sin you can’t shake off, or a hurt you can’t let go of… Wrestling in prayer is a hard task and it will permanently change you but don’t let that stop you, because that’s the way of blessing.