Life’s Perpetual Struggle
22 That night Jacob got up and took his two wives, his two female servants and his eleven sons and crossed the ford of the Jabbok. 23 After he had sent them across the stream, he sent over all his possessions. 24 So Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him till daybreak.
25 When the man saw that he could not overpower him, he touched the socket of Jacob’s hip so that his hip was wrenched as he wrestled with the man. 26 Then the man said, “Let me go, for it is daybreak.” But Jacob replied, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.” 27 The man asked him, “What is your name?” “Jacob,” he answered. 28 Then the man said, “Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God and with humans and have overcome.” 29 Jacob said, “Please tell me your name.” But he replied, “Why do you ask my name?” Then he blessed him there. 30 So Jacob called the place Peniel, saying, “It is because I saw God face to face, and yet my life was spared.” 31 The sun rose above him as he passed Peniel, and he was limping because of his hip. Genesis 32:22-31
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22 That night Jacob got up and took his two wives, his two female servants and his eleven sons and crossed the ford of the Jabbok. 23 After he had sent them across the stream, he sent over all his possessions. Genesis 32:22-23
We have witnessed an unprecedented historic election on so many levels. We had the largest turnout of voters in an election in our history as a nation. We have elected the oldest president ever. We elected the first woman vice president who is of African American and Asian descent. The result was met with an insurrection to overturn the results with violence and death. We have lawmakers defying practices and rules that protect them and others. We had a first virtual inauguration following guidelines of the CDC practicing social distancing and wearing mask to maintain health. The Capitol was protected with barriers and twenty-five thousand national guards to protect the occasion due to a threat of more violence. We were reminded by the first ever teen poet laureate, "Where can we find light in this never-ending shade? And yet, the dawn is ours before we knew it. Somehow we do it. Somehow we weathered and witnessed a nation that isn't broken but simply unfinished.” (Amanda Gorman) We are still struggling “to form a more perfect union,” (Preamble to the U.S. Constitution) and to live as “one nation under God with liberty and justice for all.” (Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag)
There is a perennial struggle in life that requires our dedication, determination and devotion. Each achievement, all progress, and every victory, personal as well as collectively, must be reinforced with resilience, resistance and resolve in order to be maintained and sustained. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. reminded us that “Every person must decide whether he or she will walk in the light of creative altruism or in the darkness of destructive selfishness.” The light of creative altruism requires continual, energetic vigilance for ‘once to every man and nation comes the moment to decide, in the strife of Truth with Falsehood, for the good or evil side; and the choice goes by forever 'twixt that darkness and that light.’ (James Russell Lowell, Present Crisis)
Consider what it means that progress requires constant vigilance in order to keep moving forward.
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24 So Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him till daybreak. Genesis 32:24
Here we are on the first Sunday in February, African American History Month. We have endured the worst this country offered, contributed to the best the country achieved, and still remain courageously loyal to the values articulated by the founders of the country they conceived. We go forth in faith, challenging the conscience of a nation experiencing a crisis of character to fulfill the promise of its creed, as articulated in its founding documents: The Declaration of Independence - “All men are created equal and they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, among them are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness;" The Preamble to the Constitution - “We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity;”and The Pledge of Allegiance to the flag, the symbol of our democratic nation, - “I pledge allegiance to the flag and to the nation for which it stands, one nation under God with liberty and justice for all”.
Our scripture today shares a story of individual struggle with communal consequences. It’s about the struggle of a person experiencing a crisis of character caused by choices whose consequences have resulted in anger, fear, and the propensity for violence. This is a story of the human struggle with God, but on another level, it is a story of the human beings’ struggle with self. Jacob wrestling at Jabbok is one of the Bible's archetypical stories of the struggle we have, being accountable for our actions as we seek to maintain our humanity, integrity, and morality.
There is something about the story of Jacob that is universal. It is a story of struggle, of desire, of a strategy to survive and eventually thrive.
Consider what it means that life requires that we wrestle a lifetime with our faith in God, ourselves, and others with fulfilling the promise of our potential.
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Tuesday, February 9, 2021 |
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24b …and a man wrestled with him till daybreak. Genesis 32:24b
God engages us where we are in our lives. We struggle with God in our attempts to be honest with ourselves. That struggle is prompted by our desire to get beyond our past misgivings. In trying to mend the rifts we have created with our choices, we now find that we struggle with what we believe about ourselves, the creeds of our faith, the desires of our hearts, and the fulfillment of our dreams. We recognize that our relationships with each other are determined by our relation with who or what we give our ultimate authority, belief, and faith.
One thing we note is that Jacob’s original deceit of his brother continues to haunt his life. He spends his life haunted by what he has done; always looking over his shoulder for the enemies he has created, like one of those wanted criminals living life under an assumed identity. “Jacob was left alone,” says Gen. 32:24. This is often where we find ourselves. We are left with all of our own anxieties, our doubts and fears.
We are wrestling in our dysfunction and division as a people who are struggling to get beyond the inconsistency of what we say we believe and the contradiction of what we continue to conceive. We were reminded by the first-ever teen poet laureate, "Where can we find light in this never-ending shade? And yet, the dawn is ours before we knew it. Somehow we do it. Somehow we weathered and witnessed a nation that isn't broken but simply unfinished.” (Amanda Gorman) We are still struggling “to form a more perfect union,” (Preamble to the U.S. Constitution); and with “one nation under God, with liberty and justice for all.” (Pledge of Allegiance)
Like Jacob, we began as a nation denying what was stated as God’s unalienable rights to which everyone was entitled. We began with discriminatory practices, woven into the fabric of our society, structurally, systemically, and systematically. We are struggling as in a tug of war, pulling against one another as ‘them’ versus ‘us’ in a bitter, contentious brawl, kerfuffle, skirmish with warlike hatred and violence with loss of life.
Jim Wallis highlights this in his seminal book, “America’s Original Sin: Racism, White Privilege and The Bridge to a New America.” Studying racism as an act of repentance and resistance is necessary. While the civil war ended April 9, 1865, Lincoln was assassinated April 14, 1865, leaving Andrew Johnson as President. The Reconstruction era was the period after the American Civil War from 1865 to 1877, during which the United States grappled with the challenges of reintegrating into the Union the states that had seceded and determining the legal status of African Americans. African Americans were given limited freedom with restrictions enacted as black codes, restrictive laws designed to limit the freedom of African Americans and ensure their availability as a cheap labor force after slavery was abolished. In the years following Reconstruction, the South reestablished many of the provisions of the black codes in the form of the so-called “Jim Crow laws.” These remained firmly in place for almost a century, but were finally abolished with the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
Consider what it means that America has never reconciled itself by repenting of her original sin, which continues to manifest itself in classism, privilege, racism, sexism, etc.
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Wednesday, February 10, 2021 |
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25 When the man saw that he could not overpower him, he touched the socket of Jacob’s hip so that his hip was wrenched as he wrestled with the man. Genesis 32:25
We are struggling to come together to reunite about addressing the threats with which we live: a pandemic that has cost the lives of more than 425,000, with more than 24,688,100 inflicted, with vaccine distribution, racial and social unrest, economic crisis threatening a potential recession, 10 million unemployed, and with uncertainty looming about managing the crisis of coming together in unity around what is needed.
Jacob has to come to grips with his deceit against his brother which haunted him. This caused him to be afraid that his brother would treat him as he deserved, given what he had done. Here was a soul searching moment for him to come to grips with how he had mistreated his brother, robbed him, took advantage of him being vulnerable. He was wrestling with himself, as well as what he believed about his relationship with the ultimate source of his existence, the creeds of his faith. In that struggle, Jacob exhausted himself attempting to win, only to realize that it was an impasse, a stalemate, a no win situation or scenario. Maybe that is what is wrong with us as a nation. An irresistible force meets an unmovable wall. We are divided almost down the middle, with a small margin on one side; so thinly split without the ability to come together for the common good of all.
Consider what it means to wrestle with how the practice of belief and faith contributes to the divisiveness that is so prevalent in our nation.
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Thursday, February 11, 2021 |
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26 Then the man said, “Let me go, for it is daybreak.” But Jacob replied, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.” Genesis 32:26
God preserves us through life's painful predicaments. Jacob acknowledges that he had been spared through God’s gracious goodness. Jacob was preserved through the struggle with what he was experiencing. This crisis situation for Jacob turned out to be a life-changing opportunity for him and for God. We are all struggling with something or perhaps multiple issues at the same time. Many of us are running away from the match or staying in denial that any such struggle needs to occur. We are not meant to avoid the struggle. We are meant to let God engage us in winning the victory over the darkness, even within ourselves. Jacob did not quit his struggle that dark night. He endured and subsequently prevailed. God does not quit on us, but grants us the Grace of God. When we are most vulnerable, this is when God stands the greatest chance of helping us.
There are times when we have to wrestle with our own failings – the times we are disappointed in the ways we have responded and acted. There are times when we have to wrestle with all the calamities, dangers, tragedies and upsets that life in this world brings. We wrestle with questions like: “Where is God when I need him?” “Why is God allowing this to happen to me?” “What have I done to deserve this?” We wrestle looking for answers, for help, for strength and God allows us to wrestle with our faith in God as we try to come to terms with what has happened or is happening in our lives. Sometimes God uses calamity, tragedy, or danger in life so that we are led to the obvious answer – that is, trust God knowing that your times are in God’s hands. (Psalm 31:15a)
We are not meant to walk away from our struggles and challenges but to engage in the “good fight” with the saving power of Jesus Christ. Resolve to go into the struggle with the grace of God and the strength and courage of Jesus Christ. Lord, keep us engaged in the struggle for your righteousness and justice and a sense of peace that only you can give us.
Consider what it means to continue in the struggle even in a stalemated situation where a no win scenario is in sight.
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Friday, February 12, 2021 |
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26 Then the man said, “Let me go, for it is daybreak.” But Jacob replied, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.” Genesis 32:26
God will do what it takes to move you through your struggles to a place of blessedness. Yet, through the agony of defeat, we often find ourselves more truly. What did Jesus say paradoxically? “To save your life, you must lose it.” (Matthew 10:39)
Cling to the Lord in your crisis. Hold on at all cost. Don’t let go. Don’t give up. Don’t give in. Don’t give out. Exhausted and exasperated, hold on anyhow!
We are not always clear about how God is going to help us. Jacob is engaged in a wrestling match in which his hip is dislocated. He is now totally dependent on the Lord. The Lord helps us by breaking us of our inherent self-dependence. Too often we want to use God and the blessings God bestows to further our own ends. All his life, Jacob had been using God and people to get what he wanted for himself. Now God brings him to see that you don't use God - you submit to God. When we submit, the Lord blesses us. Jacob is exhausted and exasperated. All he can do is hold on.
Clinging to God in our brokenness is when we ask what we really need and want – we just want to be blessed. Hold on and say, I am not going to let go of the struggle with my faith until I’m blessed. Notice, Jacob did not say how or what the blessing should be. Jacob left it open to the Lord to decide the blessing that would be bestowed. All you should want when you struggle with your faith in God is for the Lord to bless you in the way the Lord determines or deems necessary.
Consider what it means to hold onto your faith in God until you are blessed.
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Saturday, February 13, 2021 |
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27 The man asked him, “What is your name?” “Jacob,” he answered. 28 Then the man said, “Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God and with humans and have overcome.” 29 Jacob said, “Please tell me your name.” But he replied, “Why do you ask my name?” Then he blessed him there. 30 So Jacob called the place Peniel, saying, “It is because I saw God face to face, and yet my life was spared.” 31 The sun rose above him as he passed Peniel, and he was limping because of his hip. Genesis 32:27-31
The blessing was a name change. A name that would designate a people chosen by God to bless the world. The Lord did not want people carrying the baggage of their awful nature, for that would define their activity and behavior. Jacob is the third person in the patriarchy of a chosen people; after his grandfather Abraham and his father Isaac. The Lord did not want Jacob representing who the Lord is as a deceiver, fraudster, swindler and trickster. I don’t want you to be a representative of me with your worst nature but the possibility of your better nature. You may not know what you need, but I do. The blessing was a changed name. Israel is the Hebrew name, Yisra'el, meaning one who God contends, or one who struggles with God. Those identified with that name are God’s people, chosen for a purpose.
You might be broken but blessed, hurt but healed, scarred but saved, and wounded but whole. You can be met by the One who is all-seeing and all-knowing. You can trust God during the night of change and crisis, while wrestling with your doubt, with the desire to survive; knowing that the Lord will respond with a blessing to get you beyond the struggle to what’s in store for your future.
You discover something about yourself. You face your brokenness honestly. You confront your struggle with the reality of faith in God. You discover that holding on to God yields a blessing that you most desire, even though you may have been unaware.
The name change indicates a change in your connection to God. Are you caught in a web of conversation seeking clarity or a change in your proximity to God? Have you been in combat, gone through a struggle to hold on at all cost, or seeking a change in your relationship with God? You should know that you are completely owned by God with a blessing that seals your fate. You become God’s people, chosen after your struggle with yourself, grappling with your belief and understanding about God, and finally your acceptance of your relationship with God.
As a nation, we need to change our connection, proximity, and relationship with our motto, “In God, we trust.” We are children of God first and foremost as our founding documents state unequivocally.
God does not quit on us, but grants us the Grace of God with a blessing of becoming God’s children through the struggle.
Consider what it means that after your struggle with your faith in God and yourself, you are blessed to be a person of God who fulfills God’s purposes in the world through you.
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Conclusion
Hold on just a little while longer / Hold on just a little while longer / Hold on just a little while longer / Everything will be alright /Everything will be alright
Pray on just a little while longer / Pray on just a little while longer / Pray on just a little while longer / Everything will be alright / Everything will be alright /
Fight on just a little while longer / Fight on just a little while longer / Fight on just a little while longer / Everything will be alright / Everything will be alright
You know you gotta sing on / (Just a little while longer) /(Sing on just a little while longer) / (Sing on just a little while longer) /(Everything will be alright)
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