#15: A NEARMISS ENCOUNTER

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So Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him till daybreak. Genesis 32:24

This is the common story we all know that Jacob encountered God and his name was changed, and his destiny was set clear. Due to the nature of the promise on the life of Jacob, God had been looking for several means of getting his attention.

In Genesis 28:12-16, God went as far as engaging him in a vision we all know of, where angels were descending and ascending on a stair way linking heaven and earth. God spoke eventually to Jacob, but the man of God was not sensitive enough to engage God back. In fact, when he woke up, he was shocked to have found out that God was there and he knew not. God had been looking for several other opportunities to engage Jacob, and 4 chapters later, another encounter was on stage, but Jacob was going to miss out yet again.

God came to Jacob when he was alone according to our anchor text, and suddenly a struggle began. Some of us are also engaged in this struggle with God. I can imagine that God was going to touch his life and change it forever, but Jacob would not allow. It became a fight. And they fought all night long! Thank God for His mercies that endure forever, because, just as in chapter 28, during the dawn, God was tired of fighting with Jacob, and was about leaving him to himself. At this moment, the reason for fighting changed; since it was “injury time”, Jacob was now begging and fighting for last minute blessing (Gen 32:26). God mercifully tarried longer to meet him at the point of his needs. Thank God that it was while God was within the encounter radius that Jacob realized his predicaments. Had God left, it would have been another sad ending for Brother Jacob.

What is the lesson for us today and the week at large? After all that God has visited us three consecutive weeks with encounter lessons, it will be inexcusable that we miss out on divine encounters that will set us on our paths of destiny predestined before we were born-in the mind of God during creation. There is every need to be sensitive. Nevertheless, peradventure we have missed other encounters, God is visiting us today again, and can we change the momentum of our fight? Can we stop fighting against God? Can we now start fighting for definite encounters, before He passes out of sight once more? May God give us strength to press on in this race. Amen.

Happy Sunday

Written by DiDi .

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