God, The Wrestler

It's a great time of year for the sport of wrestling. We just finished the Colorado state wrestling tournament last weekend. Many states are having their state wrestling tournament this weekend. College regional tournaments are less than 10 days away, and I've already booked my tickets to attend the NCAA national tournament in Philadelphia in March. I love this time of year. Because wrestling is on my brain, I thought I would repost one of my previous entries entitled "God, The Wrestler".

Originally posted on April 19, 2009

God's wrestling match with Jacob (Genesis 32) has to be one of the coolest stories in the Bible. I'll admit I might be biased. I was born and raised around the sport of wrestling. My dad was a high school wrestling coach for over 30 years. I now find myself coaching the same sport that I competed in for 18 years. I am not talking about the kind of wrestling you see on TBS or Pay Per View. I can proudly admit that I have never painted my face, worn a speedo, or hit someone on the back of the head with a folding chair. I am talking about the sport that is seen in high school and college gyms across the country-amateur wrestling-one of the greatest and oldest sports on earth. Being familiar with the sport, I have a great appreciation for what God did on that fateful night as he engaged Jacob in a wrestling match. The story would have been much less appealing to me if God would have challenged Jacob to a ping pong match. Or, even worse, chess. God wanted to see what Jacob was made of. My brother, who is currently flying helicopters in Iraq (one of the bravest men I know), made a good point in a recent email: "I picture the LORD as the day broke filled with delight and thinking, 'Yes, this is why I made man in my image.'" I think my brother is right. God wants to engage us on this kind of level. It's just like a father wanting to wrestle with his son. He wants us to roll up our sleeves and struggle with him. He wants to see what we're made of. At first, the religious side of me was quick to think, "Wrestle with God? No, he would rather have us lay on our face and worship him." Of course He wants us to worship Him. He also wants us to "step in the ring" and grapple with Him. How cool.