Gen. 25:21-34; 27:1 – 35:29; Psalm 46; Matt. 4:1-11; Eph. 3:10-21.

Jacob is given a new name – Israel (‘he struggles with God’, NIV). The mysterious encounter at Peniel with ‘a man’ is as much about Jacob wrestling with his identity and vocation as it is with God. Our hope is found in knowing where we belong, who we are and are meant to be. Something of this is found in human relationships but even more profoundly in relation to God.