Life in the Gaps

“Jacob named the place Peniel, “Because I have seen God face-to-face, and yet my life has been preserved.” Genesis 32:30

Life in the Gaps

Peniel – When Jacob named geography, the name carried a significant meaning for him.  Bethel, the site of his famous dream about a stairway to heaven, means “the house of God”.  Peniel means “the face of God”.  But Jacob had a bit more in mind than eyesight when he chose this name.  Jacob chose a name that memorialized a life altering experience, long after his first encounter with God.  Much to Jacob’s surprise, he encountered God after a lifetime of manipulation and he did not die.  The gap between Bethel and Peniel is a lesson for all of us.

Jacob was a liar.  He was a manipulator, a schemer and a self-made man.  He spent his days looking for the angles.  Sometimes “fate” seemed to play the same tricks on him.  He wound up in bed with the wrong wife.  But even that didn’t stop Jacob from getting his own way.  He got even with Laban after years of planning.  The amazing truth about Jacob’s lifestyle is that he acted as though his first encounter with God had no effect on his behavior.  At Bethel, God promised Jacob protection and blessing.  But Jacob ran his own ship for many years after that encounter.

Then Jacob met the man at the brook Jabbok.  All night he wrestled but this was a man he couldn’t overcome.  In the darkest time in his life, the day before he would face the brother he had cheated, he encountered a foe he could not beat.  Jacob faced defeat and despair.  The next day, exhausted, he would have to look into the face of Esau.  Jacob realized that his time had come.  He was at the bottom of the pit.  Now where was God’s protection and favor?

Something happened to Jacob when he finally faced himself, when he realized he could not get the advantage.  In spite of his failure, Jacob clung to this man and refused to let go until he received a blessing from his conqueror.  And what blessing did he get?  He was probably looking for a blessing of strength to face Esau.  But what he got was a new name.  A new name that no longer meant “liar”.  He got a blessing he did not expect.  When Jacob wrestled with God in the dark, Jacob’s identity changed.  Jacob admitted who he was.  Then God told him who he would be.

If you are wrestling with God in the dark, you’re in the right place for a name change.