God in the Mess

Posted on October 13, 2021 by Catey Stover in Victory Call

Then the LORD said to Jacob, “Go back to the land of your fathers and to your relatives, and I will be with you.”  

(Genesis 31:3 NIV)

 

Have you ever felt overwhelmed by your past?  Have you ever felt disqualified to serve God because of the things you’ve done?  At this point in Jacob’s life he had already deceived his brother in an effort to steal his birthright, lied to his father, and chosen to flee from his hometown due to his bad decisions.  When the Lord asked Jacob to go back to where he was from, Jacob was reminded of his past and filled with fear.  Though the Lord had chosen to use Jacob in a powerful way and though the Lord promised to be with him, his sinful choices still remained.  The story goes on and tells us about Jacob’s fear that his brother Esau would destroy him and his family in an attempt at revenge.  On his way to meet his brother, Jacob spent an evening alone with the Lord.  The Lord met Jacob in his fear and in his doubt and Jacob surrendered to the Lord’s will. It was then that the Lord restored Jacob’s relationship with his brother.

Perhaps there are parts of your past that you, too, have run from, relationships that have been broken and wounds that still aren’t healed.  When we surrender our lives to Christ it’s easy to assume that everything will just be okay, but often the Lord asks us to go back and make peace with our past.  We are called to ask for forgiveness and extend forgiveness where necessary, even if the end result isn’t reconciliation.  The Lord didn’t promise Jacob that everything would be okay, but that He would go with Jacob.  The same promise is extended to you.  Whatever your messy past might look like, the Lord promises to be with you.  It was Jacob’s willingness to obey the Lord that made him a perfect candidate to be used by God.  So it is with us; when we are obedient and surrender to God’s plan, He uses us in mighty and powerful ways.  Will you choose to meet God even in the mess?

 

This Victory Call was originally published in Real Victory for Real Life Volume 3

Written by Ally Lang: Ally Lang is the interim program director at Barbara’s Place. She loves her husband, her fur babies, and watching God rescue and restore broken lives from addiction. Her heart’s desire is to be used by God to encourage and challenge other women, as others have done for her.

This Week’s Verse to Memorize: ¹³ For you, brethren, have been called to liberty; only do not use liberty as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. ¹⁴ For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” –Galatians 5:13-14