Wrestling with God

“Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God and with humans and have overcome.” Genesis 32:28

 Jacob struggled with God. I think we all do at some point.

Life is a struggle. The struggles in life force us to struggle with God.

Struggles are hard. If it’s not hard, it’s not really a struggle.

It’s our nature to avoid struggles. Why struggle more than necessary?

I am thankful I don’t have to struggle with some of the things my parents and grandparents had to struggle with. I hope our kids won’t have to struggle with some of the things that I’ve struggled with. We want to struggle less. We want those we care about to struggle less. 

But removing all struggles isn’t necessarily for the best either. Struggling makes us stronger. What strength is gained from avoiding struggles?

Persistent struggling leads to progress, growth, and perseverance. What can come in the way of someone with perseverance?

 Only through struggling with something does overcoming it become a possibility. We will never overcome what we are unwilling to confront. We will never overcome what we are unwilling to wrestle with. If we overcome something without struggling, what kind of accomplishment is that? Our greatest accomplishments are the ones that result from our greatest struggles. Our struggles allow us to become more than we currently are.

Why does God allow us to struggle? Maybe because he knows our potential. Maybe he knows that only through struggling does our potential become a possibility. Maybe God saw more in Jacob than Jacob saw in himself.

It seems that God was struggling with Jacob as much as Jacob was struggling with God. God wanted Jacob to be an overcomer. Before Jacob could be an overcomer, he had to first be willing to struggle.

We all struggle. Who we are is not defined by what we struggling with, but by how we struggle. By our willingness to keep on struggling. As long as we keep struggling, progress and victory remains an opportunity. When we give up the struggle, we give up the chance of overcoming it. 

Character is shaped by struggles.

I care about my kids’ character. I want my kids to pursue their potential. If struggling is the path that leads them to reaching their potential and overcoming obstacles, then I hope they live a lifetime of struggling. I hope they struggle well. Which means I should be careful when tempted to remove their struggles for the sake of their comfort, convenience, or short-term happiness.

It’s hard to watch a child struggle. But a child can’t grow up without learning to struggle. Our kids will struggle in life. It’s better for them to learn to struggle with parents there beside them, than to struggle out in the real world on their own. I hope I can love my kids enough to allow them face challenges, discomfort, and adversity while they’re young.

I’m sure it’s hard for God to watch us struggle. But He sees our potential. He knows we can’t grow without struggle. He knows we can’t be an overcomer without something to overcome. 

God will allow you to struggle in life. But He will also give you the courage to confront it, the will to wrestle with it, and the strength necessary to overcome it.

Life is a struggle. Jacob embraced the struggle.

It’s better to struggle through life with God than to struggle through life without Him.

“In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” John 16:33