Genesis 32: The Wrestling Match

Then [the man] said, “Let me go, for the day is breaking.” But Jacob said, “I will not let you go, unless you bless me.”…then the man said, “You shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel, for you have striven with God and with humans and have prevailed.”

The name Jacob means “one who supplants or deceives” whereas the name Israel means “one who strives or wrestles with God.” This was not an ordinary man with whom Jacob wrestled; he was either an angel or perhaps God Himself. Why, then, would God even consider wrestling with Jacob, or for that matter, even with one of us?

The answer is because we have a loving and caring God who reaches out to every one of us, over and over again, until we finally come to realize who God is and how much he desires a truly personal relationship with each and every one of us, and- in turn- for us to submit our will to His.

God took the time to personally wrestle with Jacob, so that Jacob would freely submit his will to God, but he stubbornly refused; so, God “struck him on the hip socket; and Jacob’s hip was put out of joint as he wrestled with him.” (Gen 32:25) Jacob would forever remember that this encounter with God was real and not a dream. As a result, the character of Jacob is profoundly altered by this experience. From this moment until his death, he is a person of honor and integrity.

Life Question: What things in our daily lives do we find ourselves in a constant wrestling match with?

Outside of the rough-housing that Josh and I usually partake in (much to the chagrin of his mother, I might add...It's so easy for me to quickly judge my kids at school in terms of their effort and work ethic; however, I find myself constantly wrestling with the notion that so many of these kids have so many "adult" issues that they are dealing with and unfortunately, school work does not always take precedence. Just this year, I have a young lady who has been in and out of the hospital for depression- and as a result, her school work has been sporadic at best. It's times like this where I need to step outside the "ring" as the taskmaster/ teacher and really reach out to these kids and try to understand their own struggles in life. I know that God is pulling me this way, but my own weaknesses tend to lead me in another direction.