Then Jacob was left alone; and a Man wrestled with him until the breaking of day. Now when He saw that He did not prevail against him, He touched the socket of his hip; and the socket of Jacob’s hip was out of joint as He wrestled with him. And He said, “Let Me go, for the day breaks.”

But he said, “I will not let You go unless You bless me!”

Genesis 32:24-26

Jacob the deceiver. Jacob the trickster. Jacob the patriarch of the nation of Israel.

Jacob had sewn a legacy of deceit. He’d tricked his brother Esau out of his birthright and had run from him. He’d tricked his uncle Laban out of flocks of sheep and was running from him. Now he was coming full circle back to his brother Esau and was faced with a moment of struggling and wrestling with God and his old deceitful self. When the angel finally blessed him, he changed his name to Israel. He was a new man.

So what brought about this transformation?

It was the struggle.

There are many times that we will face obstacles in life that lead us into a struggle.

Do we avoid them and run away in an attempt to make life easier and less stressful?

I think we do for the most part.

Do we have a dream that we want to chase, but in the moment of pursuit, we retreat because it gets hard?

I’d say “yes” for most of humanity.

Some of us have an “if I can just get through this, it will be worth it” thought process, and we are able to push through to some measure of victory.

But I say to you that God is in the struggle itself.He is in the grind.

He is in the obstacles.
He is in the wrestling and holding on.
He is in the persistence.
He is in the grit.
He is in the victory at the end.

What is all of this struggle for? It’s to change us. There are lessons that have to be learned and preparation that needs to take place before He can bless us for whatever lies ahead.

You have to be refined.

The obstacle IS the way to not only the goal, but to become more of who you really are.

Nobody said it would be easy. If they did, they were lying to you.

God has a struggle for you to go through. It’s not out of wrath and judgement, but out of love.

Will you welcome and engage in the struggle or will you run back to the couch and turn on the TV and wish life was easier? Will you remain as Jacob or will you transform into Israel?

Personally, I’m tired of easier. I’m tired of running. I’m ready to become the real me.

It’s time to wrestle.