PauseSample

Have you heard the story of Jacob and Esau? If you have, then you probably know just how complicated it can be. As brothers, Jacob and Esau were each longing to receive a blessing from their dying father. However, Jacob, the younger of the two, stepped in and stole the blessing that was due Esau. The result? A broken relationship that left Jacob on the run. So, when God spoke the words from Genesis here, He was speaking them to Jacob during a really difficult time in his life. He was meeting Jacob in the middle of a really, really, really big mess. And this is huge! Because in our own messes, we can be tempted to believe that God isn’t with us. Whether He’s left us to deal with it on our own or we’re simply trying to keep our distance because we don’t want God to see our mess, we often feel we’re struggling through it alone.

That’s what makes these compassionate words to Jacob so important for us today too. In the mess, God is with us. Wherever we go, God is going too. And with that, God promises not to leave us. He won’t abandon us or forget about us, no matter the mess we find ourselves in. So today, pray that God’s presence would show up in the middle of your mess.