The Wrestling

Devotional Archive

Day 14 - February 29, 2024

The Wrestling

“Jacob was left alone and a man wrestled with him until daybreak. When the man saw that he could not defeat him, he struck Jacob’s hip socket as they wrestled and dislocated his hip. 
Then he said to Jacob, ‘Let me go, for it is daybreak.’  
But Jacob said, ‘I will not let you go unless you bless me.’”  Genesis 32:24-26

Every time I read this story, I must take a step back for a moment. It’s just too weird. Surreal, even. Here is God, the creator of all that was and is and is to come, wrestling with this puny human. Why? Why, when He could snap his fingers and return him to dust? Why, when He could so easily bring Jacob to his knees? What did He have to prove? 

I think, perhaps, a better question may be: What did Jacob have to prove?

Our time on earth is short, yet it’s packed to the brim with opportunities to make mistakes. It’s also packed with opportunities to learn and to grow. Sometimes, however, it seems like the opportunities become too much. Sometimes it feels easier to curl up in bed, pull the blankets over your head, and decide to simply give up, give in, and feel numb instead. 

Have you ever felt like you were going through the motions? Your job growing mundane, struggling to put food on the table, your alarm clock goes off, and you just wash, rinse, repeat. In times like these, it’s easy to wonder what the point of it all is. It’s easy to lose our passion. 

In times like these, it’s the most difficult for God to use us for the kingdom. God requires fighters. He requires soldiers who, no matter how many times they are pushed down, will rise again. He needs us to get up and be passionate about something. To make decisions, to live despite the difficulty. He needs us with magma running through our veins, on fire for Jesus and willing to fight for whatever opportunity is thrown our way. 

He needed Jacob to fight him back. To prove what he was made of. To show God that, when the hard times came, he wouldn’t give in. 

It’s important to rest, of course it is. That’s the reason for the Sabbath. But if your entire life is encapsulated in a state of foggy despair, dread, and inactivity, you’re not truly resting at all. When’s the last time you fought for anything? When’s the last time you felt like there was something worth fighting for? 

I’ll tell you what’s worth fighting for. His name is Jesus. His kingdom is coming, and He wants you to be a part of it. If you’re feeling like all the fight has been kicked out of you, pray to Him. Pray to Him and take action. Bake a loaf of bread for your neighbor. Pay for someone’s coffee. Send a letter to an inmate. Show God what you’re made of. You’re not done. You can be used for God. And you will burn as bright as the sun again before you know it. 
 

Submitted by Sydney Shrimpton

Prayer Dear Father, Inspire me. Let me not live a life of passivity, but of passion. Lead me to fight. Lead me to be actively engaged. Help me remember what it’s like to feel like there’s a reason worth fighting at all. I love you, thank you for hearing me and for helping me. Amen.

 

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