“I will not let you go unless you bless me.”
Genesis 32:26 (NIV)
When God blessed Jacob, he promised to give him land, multiply his family, make him a mighty nation, and use him to bless the world. He made Jacob and his family God’s chosen people.
But just like he does with you today, God gave Jacob a promise and then tested his faith in that promise.
In Genesis 32, Jacob struggled with God all night long in a wrestling match that tested his patience, faith, and trust. Then God injured Jacob at his hip and gave him a serious disadvantage. Jacob was hurt and tired, and yet, at dawn, he still said, “I will not let you go unless you bless me” (Genesis 32:26 NIV).
Isn’t that an interesting thing to say to somebody you’re wrestling with? Apparently sometime during this all-night struggle, Jacob became aware that the one he was wrestling with was no ordinary individual. He was wrestling with God. And so, Jacob refused to let go, knowing that God could bless him.
Maybe you feel like you’re wrestling with God right now, and the struggle is lasting way too long.
The very God you’re wrestling with is the one who gives you your dream for your life. He’s the one who will make it happen! God is not trying to thwart your dream. He’s getting you ready for it. Your struggle will build your stamina, deepen your patience, and increase your resilience.
Globalization and the attendant concerns about poverty and inequality have become a focus of discussion in a way that few other topics, except for international terrorism or global warming, have. Most people have a strong opinion on globalization, and all of them express an interest in the well-being of the world's poor. The financial press and influential international officials confidently assert that global free markets expand the horizons for the poor, whereas activist-protesters hold the opposite belief with equal intensity. Yet the strength of people's conviction is often in inverse proportion to the amount of robust factual evidence they have.As is common in contentious public debates, different people mean different things by the same word. Some interpret "globalization" to mean the global reach of communications technology and capital movements, some think of the outsourcing by domestic companies in rich countries, and others see globalization as a byword for...
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