(Image Credit: Redemption Bible Church)
Genesis 32:24-28:
“So Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him till daybreak. 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.
Then the man said, “Let me go, for it is daybreak.”
But Jacob replied, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.”
The man asked him, “What is your name?”
“Jacob,” he answered.
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.”
This is an excerpt from the story of Jacob.
Jacob had been on the run after swindling his brother out of his inheritance. He was preparing to return home for the first time in many years, hoping that his misdeeds of the past were long forgiven.
The night before he’s set to join his family on the journey, he encounters a man and engages in an all-night grappling match with him.
We don’t know why this figure appeared or what precipitated this contest, but there’s a lesson to be found here.
In the early part of his life, Jacob was a manipulator and trickster. The meaning of his name— “Deceiver”—was an apt description of his character in his youth.
In many foreign cultures, including my own, names are still used to mark current events or establish a virtue for a child to aspire to.
(The power of life and death is in the tongue, something to consider when it comes to naming your children or what words you direct at the people around you.)
Along with a new name to mark the transition into his next phase of life, Jacob received reassurance about his future.
When you grow tired of the same movie playing again and again in your life, the stage is set for change. Maybe it’s a stress-inducing glance at the clock, reminding you that you’ve got only a few hours before you’ve got to trudge to a job that leaves you feeling empty and underutilized. That impetus for change might even be involuntary, the product of circumstances beyond your immediate control:
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All that’s needed to break through to a new level is the commitment to bring change to pass and the presence of allies ready to lend a hand.
Are you ready for a change? Do you feel like something’s missing in your life or you’re searching for something you cannot quite put your finger on?
Reach out to me for a free strategy session. I’ve got three openings for new meetings and I’d love to see how I can help.
Whether you are eyeing a career move that you can wake up feeling excited about or just seeking an improvement in the relationship department, I’m here for you.