Kneel Down Rather Than Buckling Down…. Series

Kneel down rather than buckling down….

Life of Jacob –Part 3

Genesis 32:10 “I am not worthy of the least of all the mercies and of all the truth which you have shown Your servant….”

Worry will make you old; stress will kill you; prayer will set you free!

We need God’s help not only on a daily basis but on a minute to minute basis. I know this by experience. I came across a little prayer in a Christian magazine, headed: "A Morning Prayer for Help" . It goes like this, "Dear God, so far today I’ve done alright, I haven’t gossiped, lost my temper, been nasty, selfish or over indulgent. But in a few minutes God, I’m going to get out of bed and from then on, I’m going to need all the help I can get." Spiritual strength comes through prayer!

Today, I am going to again talk about the life of Jacob and let us learn some valuable lessons from his life. Yesterday, we read about the right direction Jacob takes in his life according to the Word of God. Now listen, just because you are walking in the will of God that does not mean that we will not have any problems or hassles. There is no ‘problem free’ life. We need to learn to overcome the hurdles that we face in our life with the wisdom of God and we should also have a clear understanding, if the problems that we are facing are placed by satan or is it because of our own doing. Got it? If you are going through marital problems, please search your heart to find out if there are any mistakes from your end. There are some couples who elope or marry without the will of God and their parents. In such cases, there are curses attached because of disobeying God and parents, hence analysis of the problem is essential. We need to humble ourselves and prostrate in front of God rather than saying “where is God now?” People please understand, God is unchangeable, He remains the same, punishment is inevitable for those who disobey God. It may be an individual or a whole nation.

Jacob when he smells trouble runs to God and says “I am not worthy of the least of all the mercies.”. Jacob has finally learnt to RUN TO GOD FOR HELP RATHER THAN TO MEN. When Jacob starts his journey, he is surprised, shocked and very scared to hear that his brother Esau is coming to meet him with 400 men. (read Genesis chapter 32 for better understanding). Jacob was scared of his brother Esau because he had cheated his brother many years back. Listen to me friend, when you take a decision to follow Jesus, satan might send somebody to scare you and hinder your walk and faith by showing that there are 400 men on the opposite side, but let me tell you today, “Greater is He that is in you than he that is in the world.” The Esau in your life, may be in the form of a failure, delay or discouragement, but do not give up, get down on your knees to pray. Today, after returning from a successful two days of ministry, I least expected to face attacks on every side I turned. I was physically tired and exhausted and hence I felt weak to handle the blow. I found myself getting irritated and also not handling the situation with godly grace. Dear friend, please understand even for a servant of God like me, if not for God’s grace I would stumble and stagger. More than all of you, satan loves to see me make mistakes. I determined my heart to immediately get on my knees and pray until I am filled with His grace to tackle the situation with much more poise and humility. Now, when someone hits you, you are able to bear it and not hit back. This attitude comes only through prayer! My dear friends, when you are hurt for no mistake of yours, there is a tendency to tear that person apart who is hurting you into pieces, but I advice you never to do such things, but leave the matter into the Hands of God and remain silent. How do I do this? THROUGH PRAYER! There are lot of fights in your life and home because there is no prayer or less prayer in your life. Come on now, be convicted right now of your prayerlessness and start making plans to improve your prayer life! Jacob’s prayer reveals his dependency upon God! How do you handle crisis in your life?