Jacob named the place Peniel (which means “face of God”), for he said, “I have seen God face to face, yet my life has been spared.” (Genesis 32:30 NLT)

Jacob came face to face with God, and he was finally changed by grace.

Jacob means the "supplanter" or the deceiver. His whole life, he had taken things that were rightly his in wrong ways. He acquired things through devious means rather than allowing God to give them to him. Jacob's selfishness has led him to a place where he was between a rock and a hard place. Esau, his brother, who he had swindled out of his inheritance, was bearing down on Jacob (Genesis 32:6:7a NLT).  He is all alone, it is just Jacob and God; there is no one to manipulate (32: v.24). God often brings us to the end of ourselves, and then we see real change.

Jacob struggles all night with God, and as a reminder, God dislocated Jacob's hip. God knows we often forget. As the sun started to rise, Jacob knew that if he looked upon God face-to-face, he would die, yet he continues to struggle. Intuitively, he realized that life without God life was not worth living. Consciously or unconsciously, he must have concluded; if I die, I must have God's blessing. If you must have God, you will.

The sun rose, and Jacob named the place Peniel "face of God." He had looked upon God, and the Lord spared his life. He finally understood grace. God changed his name from Jacob, the deceiver, to Israel, the one who prevailed with God. You cannot receive the grace of God without being transformed.

We, like Jacob, often miss God's grace because we try everything else first.

I worked for seventeen years as a missionary with Youth With A Mission.  My missionary work has taken me to Mexico, Canada, Chile, Argentina, Bolivia, Spain, and Ukraine.  I hold a Masters of Education in curriculum and instruction from Virginia Commonwealth University.  [email protected]