{"id":923,"date":"2011-08-07T11:19:30","date_gmt":"2011-08-07T11:19:30","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.creativeyouthideas.com\/resources\/?p=923"},"modified":"2021-04-08T11:44:18","modified_gmt":"2021-04-08T03:44:18","slug":"the-heal-grabber","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.creativeyouthideas.com\/resources\/devotional\/the-heal-grabber\/","title":{"rendered":"The Heel Grabber"},"content":{"rendered":"

Scripture: Jacob – Genesis 32<\/strong><\/p>\n

As a youth, you probably remember the story of Jacob’s ladder many times.<\/p>\n

Jacob was sneaky. Deceitful. Conniving. Crafty. Dishonest. Selfish. His name means \u201cHeel Grabber.\u201d He came out of the womb wanting that which did not belong to him, holding onto his brother Esau\u2019s heel.<\/p>\n

Esau was rough and tough. An outdoorsman. A hunter. The \u201cwoodsy\u201d type. His name meant \u201cRed\u201d and \u201cHairy.\u201d Genesis 25:25 – \u201cHis whole body was like a hairy garment.\u201d Sexy, Huh? The guy was a human \u201cOrangutan.\u201d<\/p>\n

So you had \u201cBig Red\u201d, Esau the Ape Man and in contrast, Jacob was a spoiled smooth-skinned \u201cmamma\u2019s boy\u201d who ran around hanging onto mom\u2019s coat tails all the time. He was a \u201cwimp.\u201d I\u2019ll bet he was a \u201ctattle-tale\u201d too! I can just hear him: \u201cMom, Esau hit me!\u201d \u201cMom, Esau snuck some candy out of the pantry before dinner.\u201d \u201cMom, Esau called me a dirty name.\u201d \u201cMom, Esau shot the neighbor\u2019s cat with his bow and arrow.\u201d<\/p>\n

One day, Jacob deceived his blind father (with his mother\u2019s help). They covered his smooth body with goatskins so he felt (and \u201csmelt\u201d) like his hairy brother and he stole Esau\u2019s birthright and blessing. Made \u201cBig Red\u201d so mad that he vowed to kill Jacob as soon as his father died. Jacob had to run for his life and the momma’s boy never saw his mother again.<\/p>\n

But later he would wrestle with God and walk away not only with his name changed to Israel, but also his character changed. The heel grabber grabbed for God instead.<\/p>\n

From a Sermon by Wayde Wilson<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n