"Then Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him until daybreak. When he saw that he had not prevailed against him, he touched the socket of his thigh; so the socket of Jacob’s thigh was dislocated while he wrestled with him. Then he said, "Let me go, for the dawn is breaking." But he said, "I will not let you go unless you bless me." So he said to him, "What is your name?" And he said, "Jacob." He said, "Your name shall no longer be Jacob, but Israel; for you have striven with God and with men and have prevailed." Then Jacob asked him and said, "Please tell me your name." But he said, "Why is it that you ask my name?" And he blessed him there. So Jacob named the place Peniel, for he said, "I have seen God face to face, yet my life has been preserved." Now the sun rose upon him just as he crossed over Penuel, and he was limping on his thigh. Therefore, to this day the sons of Israel do not eat the sinew of the hip which is on the socket of the thigh, because he touched the socket of Jacob’s thigh in the sinew of the hip." Genesis 32:24-32

"I will not let you go unless you bless me."
"I WILL NOT LET YOU GO UNLESS YOU BLESS ME."
"I WILL NOT LET YOU GO UNLESS YOU BLESS ME."

I am sensing in my spirit that someone reading this...needs this! You have been struggling, seeking, questioning, even to the point of doubting. "God, where are you! Can't you hear me? I need you! HELP ME!' And the louder you have cried out, the more desperate the situation seemed to get! Am I right? How would I know? Could it be that I have been there myself? Could it be that I understand that feeling of being alone? Thinking that no one cares, not even God?

"Then Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him until daybreak." Nothing is worse than to be alone. It may not physically be night time, but it sure seems like it. Remember in Genesis 2:18 where God said it was not good for man to be alone? Well, it isn't! It's a horrible feeling!

But that's not the point of what God is telling us here. Jacob was alone...but he wasn't. He was alone, but a man wrestled with him. So he wasn't alone. To the human eye, he was alone, but yet, as we read on, we see in the spiritual that he wasn't...God was with him!

But, Darlene, they were wrestling! They sure were. Please don't quit reading. This is the whole key.

Too many times when we encounter trials and heartaches, we want to give up. But Jacob didn't give up. Even though the circumstances facing him the next day didn't look good for the home team, he did not give up on God's mercy. He persevered. God saw Jacob's endurance, and He said, "It's OK. Don't struggle. Your answer is here." And Jacob replied, "I want more than just a solution for tomorrow. I want to see Your face. I want Your blessing on my life."
And when the morning came, the people saw the limp and said, "My God, something awesome has happened. He has been with God. From this day on we will remember and celebrate."

At the beginning of this teaching, I said someone needed this. That was so true, 'cause that someone was me. I have been going through a "night time," questioning whether anyone cared...questioning whether anyone was even there.

But you know, it doesn't matter if physically I'm alone or not. What matters is that I refuse to let go of God, and keep on enduring until I see the blessing. Sometimes it's not easy. Sometimes it seems like the night is a hundred nights long. But, if I - and you - keep on "keeping on," we will see the blessing of the Lord. And, just as others saw Jacob limping and knew that something had happened, others will see that we've been blessed, and remember it and celebrate it.

Don't ever give up on God. Keep pressing in. Don't let go...wait for the blessings and they will come!!