“What is your name?”
He asked as He stared at me, intensely, with those boring, burning eyes of His and immediately I knew. I knew, right there and then, it was over. As I frantically gasped for air, still wincing from the pain in the hollow of my thigh, memories of my past came flooding back at me.
Wave after wave of awful memories hit me without mercy – my conspiracy with my mother to steal my twin brother’s blessing; how I cheated my Uncle Laban and ran away with his daughters, and a myriad of other things I was not so particularly proud of.
These memories, like a thousand mirrors, reflected my reality. I came face to face with who I really was. The reality I so detested; the reality I had been in conflict with all my life. The reality I never wanted to accept.
The blast of the cold early morning wind made my teeth chatter and dance uncontrollably, almost mocking me. The silence screamed, “Deceiver! Liar!” at me. The words, like tiny arrows, went straight for the bull’s eye– my heart. I had come to the end of me.
I was a man on the run, a man whose life was in danger. This moment was probably going to be my last moment here on earth. In my mind’s eye, I could see my brother, Esau ferociously racing towards me to hunt me down.
So I looked up at Him with glassy eyes and answered with a tired whisper,
“My name is Jacob, the surplanter, the deceiver, the cheat, the liar. This is who I am.”
It seemed like forever but I heard His voice, strong, steady and certain, as it pierced through the silence.
“Beginning from today, your name ceases to be Jacob. Your new name is Israel, a prince with God.”
Torrents of tears poured down my cheeks as I felt His hands upon my dusty head and shoulder. It was worth it. I forever remembered the day I stood naked before the King, for that was the day my life was transformed. As for my brother, the hunter, I found favour in his sight after my encounter with God, the King.
#StoriesFromGenesisThirtyOne
#NakedandUnashamed
#unmasked
Well, dear readers, why am I telling you this story? Simple! It is important that you learn to be sincere before God. There is no need trying to “impress” God with your spirituality. You see, He already knows you to your very core. He knows you down to your intestine (in Pastor Dunamis’ voice).
There is no need to come before His presence masking your true feelings. It is just pointless. If you are mad at God, well, tell Him you are mad at Him. If you are angry or you feel jealous or envious of your friends’ success, don’t go about bad mouthing them just so you can feel good. Rather, tell God. If you feel abandoned by God, tell Him. If you are afraid, tell Him. God cannot be shocked by your feelings oo. See, even if you do not feel like praying or studying or reading the word, tell Him. Let Him help you. Let His pure words purify you.
When Jacob opened up to God at Peniel, there was a transformation. It wasn’t as though God did not know who Jacob was. He just wanted to see if He had gotten to the point where He could help Him. When you come before God the King, naked and unashamed, He pours out His grace and mercy upon you. He pours out His love into your heart.
Friends, it is high time we learned how to come before God naked and unashamed.
Who’s with me on this?
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THE REVOLUTION 