Station 4: Jacob’s Vision and Wrestling

Before reading, take a moment to tune into the Spirit.

Get comfortable where you are sitting. Feel free to light a candle or close your eyes. 

Take a few deep breaths and focus on the movement of the air gently expanding and contracting your lungs. 

Be still and know that this is the Spirit rushing through you.

When you are ready, begin by meditating on these words.

Jacob! His name means “trickster” which really sums up the majority of his life. Jacob’s problem was that he was a control freak. He manipulated everyone he came in contact with. Then one night, he falls asleep in a lonely place. Jacob has a dream of a stairway coming from the sky and angels ascending and descending it. God didn’t see Jacob as just a trickster or a liar. God saw him as so much more!

Grace has nothing to do with our steps towards God, but God’s steps towards us. Grace is never an equal trade. It’s always something that is rooted in the very nature of who God is. Someone who wants us to experience him. 

Take with You

In the first vision that Jacob receives, God had created an access point to the trickster as an act of grace. God had favored the unfavorable; simply because that’s who God is. During Advent, we anticipate the celebration of the coming of Christ as our access point to God.

The second vision that Jacob receives is a lot more physical. One night, Jacob wrestled a mysterious man till dawn. Was it God? An angel? A devil? Jacob wasn’t sure but he wasn’t going to let go until he was blessed. The fight ended with Jacob receiving a new name and walking differently than before. 

At Christmas, we love the hype of Christ our access. But once he arrived, the wrestling began. We wrestled with the reality of this Human God. The brightest night had ended and the darkness of the world set in and we didn’t recognize who we were dealing with.  But those who didn’t let go became blessed, received new names, and walked differently than before. 

Genesis 28:10-22