Wrestling with God (2)

Initiation of Israel and the Wrestling with God

This dynamic of “Wrestling with God”, brings to life a study I have been ever increasing in my interest of. I’ll do my best to explain the process and results but will cite the study officially for any who are rabbit hole divers like me. Upfront the deeper desire to work this out was driven by a dear friend of mine’s wife, Mandy Pressley. She said something I will get to in a short bit that spurred my spirit to want to know more. The study in short is about Rough and Tumble play amongst rats. Their social interactions have proven to be valuable in studying children and adults. Taking a large rat and one smaller rat and introducing them into a cage the 2 rats would engage in play. Often the smaller rat being the first to initiate. As you can imagine the larger rat could subdue the smaller rat with ease. But they found that if the larger rat did not allow for the smaller rat to win at least 3 out of 10 bouts the smaller rat would completely withdraw and stop initiating interaction with the larger rat. I found this fascinating because with 2 small boys I can see this play out. There is a moment when wrestling with my oldest, Vic, who is 3 years old, that if I were to pin him just one more time he may want to stop. So, I put on my best bad guy being defeated act and we have another 15 mins of wrestling before seeing this turning point emerging again. This leads me to a pivotal interaction in Genesis between Jacob and God.

Genesis 32:23-32 “And Jacob was left alone. And a man wrestled with him until the breaking of the day. When the man saw that he did not prevail against Jacob, he touched his hip socket, and Jacob’s hip was put out of joint as he wrestled with him. Then he said, “Let me go, for the day has broken.” But Jacob said, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.” And he said to him, “What is your name?” And he said, “Jacob.” Then he said, “Your name shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel, for you have striven with God and with men, and have prevailed.” … And there he blessed him. So, Jacob called the name of the place Peniel, saying, “For I have seen God face to face, and yet my life has been delivered.”

I admit that this always seemed a bit odd that God could be subdued by man. But as with all things of the Word, the faith the Holy Spirit has provided in abundance allowed my mind to see it, wonder about it, and then be thankful for Jesus and move forward. But as I mentioned above, Mandy put the study of the Rough and tumble play on a parallel track with this scripture. That is when a thought began to form in my mind that I had to attempt to work out. “What if like a Father, God knew he could take care of Jacob in a wrestling match, but He chose to let him win?”, she said. Well, that seems like it would bring to life a real encouragement to keep wrestling with God. Is that not the true meaning of Israel? We who wrestle with God. If we are looking at it from a national standpoint now, as in the people of Israel it is starting to come together. I am going to now try to tie this up with a bow.

Our Father in Heaven desires relationship with us above all else. He even sent His son Jesus to die for us that we may be reconciled back to Him. Relationship requires work, and pursuit of the other to grow and deepen. That often brings some “wrestling” through moments to climb to new heights in a relationship. God called Jacob by a new name, Israel. He allowed him to be held by his might. The name Israel means “wrestled with God”. See the flow? He wants us to wrestle with Him continually. For us to desire this pursuit of growth with our Father, he gives us hope that we can request of him the desires we have in our heart and even work them out with Him. I love the idea that my God would encourage me to wrestle with him in pursuit of newness and not just that, but he would, like I do with my boys, spur the process on by giving victories within our relationship. Prayers answered that have been spiritually sought for years. Physical ailments that he continues to provide for. Depths of His love we desire to see but are revealed when we least expect it. Bringing to salvation a dear friend that we’ve grieved over for a decade. It is these things that continue to bring us back to the Throne of God and ask Him to wrestle once more with us that we might ask for His blessing and He in his everlasting goodness smile and say, “What do you want from me, my child?” This is the dynamic I desire with my 2 boys. The invitation to play and wrestle our faces off. Why? Because in these moments I can open doors for them that they desire to dive deeper into play with me. They desire more and more every day to spend time with me. We learn together how much they can handle before becoming exhausted or disinterested. These developments matter to them and to us as children of God. It then gives us pure reminders that it is the mercy of our Heavenly Father that draws us in, and we answer the call. Not only that but provides confidence in Him to accomplish what we need even when we don’t know what it is we need. In this scripture Jacob is needing anything God can give. When Vic pins me, and I tell him he is the strongest hero I have met. He is receiving a blessing from me that does more than just create a smile. Neurologically his body responds in confidence and certainty that he is strong. When I tell him he is courageous for taking on Goliath (who I usually play), that is a blessing, and his spirit is reinforced in that he shouldn’t be afraid of someone bigger or something stronger. It is in this I see Jacob demanding a blessing to lend hope or anything to build him up. His confidence is reassured, and his spirit strengthened. He has been running from his brother since he lied to his father. I encourage you to enter His presence and ask Him to “wrestle” with you. Not in a spirit of pride, but one of humility and childlike faith knowing that through His love for us he makes more of himself known to those who pursue him. Be honest in your wrestling with God. He wants us to pour out our hearts to Him. He knows what we need, just as God knew what Jacob needed.