Struggles From Within

"The children struggled together within her, and she said, “If it is thus, why is this happening to me?” So she went to inquire of the Lord.  And the Lord said to her, "Two nations are in your womb, and two peoples from within you shall be divided; the one shall be stronger than the other, the older shall serve the younger.”

~Genesis 25:22-23

The life of Jacob was a struggle. Even before his birth, he wrestled with his twin, Esau. Throughout his life, he struggled to have what he wanted and he didn't always go after those things fairly. In fact, the name Jacob means: he takes by the heel; he cheats. And Jacob did cheat, lie, and manipulate, but he was also cheated, lied to and manipulated by others. By the time he was an older man, he even wrestled with God, fighting to be blessed. He got his blessing, but it cost him - he was crippled for the rest of his life. Everything Jacob acquired during his life cost him. From the wives who cost him twenty years of hard labor to the blessing of God.

Sometimes we have to struggle for what we want. Whether it's working through problems to save a relationship, or struggling with money to pay our bills, or with coworkers to keep our workplace peaceful, life is a struggle. But there's a different kind of struggle many of us go through, and that is the struggle within ourselves. The struggle between our hearts and our heads, which was also some of the problem Jacob had.

Often, we see things we want and go headlong into getting them without thinking through what the cost might be. We want and will use any means to get it, often hurting others and making enemies. Once we have what we desire, we may enjoy it for a while but then the reality of what it cost us sets in and we see it really wasn't worth it. 

While Jacob made many mistakes, the one thing he did right every time, was to go to God. In spite of all of our shortcomings, we have a God who bigger than any mistake we can make. While our mistakes may cost us here on Earth, we don't have to let them cost us spending eternity with Christ.

"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:6-7)."

Read

Genesis 31-32

A Year of Blessings by Marie McGaha

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