Have you ever struggled with holding on? Like you know the feeling of going grocery shopping and the only parking you found on your way back home is a block away from your house, so you try to carry all the bags in one trip instead of making more trips, and the weight of the bags hurt your hands and fingers, making it hard to continue to hold on. Well, there is a different type of weariness and pain when it comes to struggling to hold on mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. For instance, have you been given a promise that has yet to come, making it hard to believe? Or have you ever been in a prayer meeting and gotten tired of pressing in? If so, you’re not alone. Genesis 32:22-23 tells us about the moment where Jacob wrestles with God, is given a new name, and sees God face to face, which reminded me of me. You see, Jacob is someone who struggled with God and with people but overcame it. He encountered God and went from being a struggler to an overcomer. His name went from Jacob, a supplanter, and deceiver, to Israel, one who triumphant with God. What I find interesting about this passage is that Jacob was the one who kept holding on and would not let go until he got his blessing. He kept pressing in and asking for his blessing. He did not give up. How many times have you let go of a promise or blessing because of being tired of holding on, asking, or believing for “too long”? Or how many times have you stopped pursuing God and left before experiencing an encounter with God? God wants you to press in and continue to press in his presents. You won’t have an encounter with God by being a spectator. Like my pastor said in the past, we need participants in the kingdom of God, not spectators. When I was a baby Christian, I went to church and read the Bible as a routine while struggling with my worth. I expected a transformation because I went to church three times a week, but transformation is not about attendance, it’s experience. It was not until I experienced and encountered God that I found my worth and identity. He gave me a new name. I went from broken to restored, lost to found, and unworthy to chosen. I want to encourage you and challenge you to keep pressing in, seeking, and believing no matter how long it takes. When you encounter His presence, He will turn it around.
Prayer:
Help me seek you and praise you without getting tired, not because of my needs or wants but because of who you are. Renew my strength like the eagles, so I will not grow weary or tired. Enable me to have supernatural encounters with you, where I see you face to face. Give me supernatural hunger and thirst to seek you and spend time with you. Allow me not to let go of your presence or promises. I give you the honor and praise for what is to come.
Worship Song: