Wrestling God

"Tangled Blessing" by the Rev. Lauren Wright Pittman of A Sanctified Art, LLC

This weekend we are tackling Jacob. Kind of an ironic way to put that - we are looking at Jacob and Rachel's story.

The truth is that we already started Jacob's tale last week as we heard of the birth of the twins and what happens in families with generations-worth of crazy trauma at work. It is not pretty. Really, it is a hot mess. And even though it is only partially their fault, Jacob and his older twin Esau have to live with the fallout.

So, off to extended family Jacob runs. His mother's family to be precise. To her brother Laban, who has two daughters. Jacob sees the younger one (yes, his cousin - but that didn't matter back then) and falls instantly in love. Agrees to work seven years for her.

Except, on the wedding night, his willy uncle switches out the brides in the wedding tent (which is very dark) and when they wake - it is Leah in Jacob's arms. But no matter, it's biblical marriage. That means a man can have as many wives as he wants. Plus, it does not matter if they're related.

So, Jacob somehow agrees to work another seven years and gets to marry Rachel (the one he wanted). And bonus, he gets two slave wives (cough, rape, cough) out of this deal, too. Under his eye.

Jacob winds up with twelve sons and one daughter. The daughter, Dinah, gets forgotten because of the hell that happens to her, and because, let's be honest, we always blame the girl. But the sons end up turning into the twelve tribes of Israel.

And like every generation that has gone before... his family is complicated. It is messy. It is downright messed up. We will talk more about what happens to his kids next week.

But even with all these (cough) blessings, Jacob still has something following him. That redheaded brother he cannot get away from. And one day, he finally catches up.

What does Jacob do? He sends all his possessions, including his wives and children, over to meet Esau ahead of him. All while he hangs back for a night to sleep. Because he really doesn't want to do this.

He finds himself wrestling with a stranger until daybreak. The stranger is clearly not trying to kill him, but Jacob will not let the stranger go until he is blessed. So the stranger knocks his hip out of whack so he will never forget.

Since time immemorial the scholars have told us that Jacob was wrestling God or one of God's messengers. Probably because he was working through all the issues he had had lo these many years. His own family drama, going back generations. His fear that he will die the next day. HIs doubt that he is in any way worthy to be the one through whom the promise will be fulfilled.

And if you, like me, have ever wrestled God through the night, you know how exhausting it is. You know how daunting the tasks God can set for us can be. But you also know that when God calls us, God is the one who makes us worthy and God will never leave us with gaping wounds that will get in our way. God works with us to ensure we have healed scars that never let us forget what we have been through, but that also give us new gifts for the journey ahead.

See you on Sunday.

Blessings,

Rev. Janie