SCRIPTURE: Genesis 32:22-31
TEXT: 31The sun rose upon him as he passed Penuel, limping because of his hip. THEME: We have scars as indelible markers of a life of faith. INTRODUCTION Scars are remnants of our stories. There are scars that remind us of a battle, of a birth, of disobedience, of helping, of healing and of faith. Most of my scars are attached to stories of carelessness or poor judgment; jumping on a bed and hitting the bed post, a box cutter that hit a can while opening a case of peas at Big Save, and grabbing a fish lure as it fell. When Jacob shows up the next morning, he has a noticeable limp, “What were you doing? Why are you limping? What happened to you?” SCRIPTURE Jacob’s story begins, “I changed direction to followed God’s call to move back home, towards my angered brother, my parents and God’s promises.” Meeting Esau was first (or so he thought). The last time Jacob saw him was after he bought Esau’s birthright from him with some lentil soup. Then dressing up as Esau, he stole his blessing from their father. Esau was ready to kill Jacob, so he ran away. Coming back home was like arriving at the edge of a storm. Jacob sent his cute kids, lovely wives, goods and livestock across to Esau’s side of the river thinking that if Esau encountered these relatives that he has never met and gifts, it might soften his heart. But as soon they reached the other side, an attacker grips Jacob by the river. They wrestled all night long. As dawn approached, this opponent, in a desperate move, struck Jacob’s hip joint out of its socket, but Jacob would not give release. He was embracing God and would not let go without a blessing. “What is your name?” God asked. It was like revealing a scar as he answered, “Jacob.” In saying his name, he confessed that he had been a ‘heel’ his whole life, inconsiderate, untrustworthy, a thief, a conniver and a coward. “Leave your identity as Jacob behind and live as Israel, a “God wrestler”. This name change is a sign of a direction towards God and if you forget or doubt this encounter, here is a scar, a reminder of your faith, a limp. Wrestle with God in the way you live and in your treatment of others.” If that wasn’t a strong enough faith marker, Jacob also renames the place “‘Peniel’ for I have seen God face to face and yet my life is preserved.” Jacob will always remember the time he held God in his embrace; the smell of heaven, the strength of God, the breath of life, the voice of compassion, the heat of their struggle and the blessing found in holding on to God. APPLICATION Turning towards God, Jacob is confronted with how he has treated people in the past. God confronts him that night, wrestling him where his strength does not win him an advantage. How does latching on and wrestling with God challenge and reshape our story and our Church’s story? What are our scars of faith, reminders of? A call to be in relationship with God is a call to be in relationship with others which isn’t always easy. I remember being a self-centered child, wanting to do things only my way, regardless of what my parents wanted. Sorrowful I would come to my senses and say I’m sorry. I see this as my grandson coming out of a timeout and into their mother’s arms. Tears are the scars of reconciliation. The Rev. Dr. Grant Lee passed away on Wednesday. He has been a friend for a long time. I met him while a Junior in High School. I was on the Youth Ministry Advisory Council and he was one of the advisors, as Youth Minister from Nuuanu Congregational Church. His life has touched and shape so many in ministry and formed multitudes in Christian faith. He worked at Pearl City Community Church, was an Associate Conference Minister, then he pastored Wailua UCC, a constant listener, capturing and telling local “Talk Story” events of faith. The later part of his life was with Parkinson, it was a struggle, but he made accommodations for it as he continued to advocate for ways to bring education to those who serve as authorized leaders of our congregations. Thinking about him, the indelible mark I see, is his broad smile. He took pleasure in people and their lives in Jesus. As our island’s COVID numbers increase, we have to reduce our exposure to each other’s again. We have discovered that we can be the church while ‘sheltering in’ by using the technology available to us, Facebook, Zoom, texting, email, cell phone etc. I ordered an iRIG Pre which is an iPhone interface that will take any mic in the sanctuary and pipe it into my Facebook live feed. Our worship has become a scar on Facebook that records our struggles and triumphs of being the church, separate and apart, but connected and thriving. Some members prefer worshipping this way as they can sit in the comfort of their homes, as a family, to worship. So, don’t let us sing alone, sing along from home, as we soooo miss our singing together. Sheltered in, can create raw nerves, close quarters can be eventful, always making accommodations, adjusting to different scenarios, praying for health care workers, schools and hybrid distant learning options. We live in stressful times, filled with anxiety and uncertainty. Prayer becomes a scar of faith, left on everything we have no control over, to engage the God who wrestles with us, to wrestle in the face of these times. Prayer is our way of embracing the smell of heaven, the strength of God, the breath of life and the voice of compassion. There are names that we have bore in the past that reflect our bias, our privilege over others, our greed and our injustice. God gives us the capacity to be renamed as ‘God Wrestler’ to reflect our identity as one in process, somewhere in the journey from where we were, to where God leads us to be. Where we are wrestling with our bias, wrestling with our exclusion, wrestling with our abundance over our scarcity, and wrestling with how to be just. God Wrestlers show movement, God Wrestlers ask questions, God Wrestlers give up old values for God’s ways, God Wrestlers change their perspective and their behavior. God Wrestlers are open to inspiration. CONCLUSION The scars of faith may not always be a keloid, at times it is a limp from a dislocated hip, at times it is the tears of reconciliation, at times it is a smile of joy, at times it is new technology at the altars set up for worship, at times they are prayers that bridge the gap between anxiety with the Holy, and at times it is a name change from “Heel” to “God Wrestler.” As we journey with God, we my stumble and fail, but it is not forever. We may hesitate because we are afraid of how much this is going to hurt. But in God’s embrace we have the help that we need. If we allow ourselves to risk the Pain, hope can empower us to move us on. Embracing God gives us the power of hope and we have scars to prove it.
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