There are moments in life when we look around and think, This isn’t where I expected to end up.
Jacob knew that feeling.
By the time he reached the wilderness in Genesis 28, he had gotten what he thought he wanted. He had secured the blessing, but at tremendous cost. His family was shattered, his brother wanted him dead, and he was running for his life. The wilderness wasn’t part of his plan. It was where his choices had led him.
And yet that was exactly where God met him.
One of the themes we explored in Sunday’s message is what John Wesley called prevenient grace—the grace of God that comes before we deserve it, before we’ve straightened out our lives, and before we fully understand what God is doing. God doesn’t begin by lecturing Jacob or putting him on probation. Instead, God comes with a promise: “I am with you... I will not leave you.”
Jacob’s journey of transformation has only begun. He will continue to struggle, bargain, and try to control his future. But something important changes at Bethel. He discovers that God was already present before he recognized it.
Perhaps that’s true for us as well.
Many of us have experienced seasons when plans unraveled, relationships became strained, or life took an unexpected turn. We may even wonder if we’ve wandered beyond God’s reach. Jacob’s story offers a quiet but powerful reminder: God’s presence is not limited to the places we expect to find it.
One of my favorite images from the service came from this week’s Pew Pals comic.
That echoes a play on words people have enjoyed for years:
God is nowhere.
Add a small space, and it becomes:
God is now here.
The letters never changed. Only our perspective did.
Jacob awoke from his dream and said, “The LORD is definitely in this place, but I didn’t know it.”
Maybe that’s a prayer worth carrying into this week.
Whatever place you find yourself in today—even if it isn’t where you expected to be—may God open your eyes to discover that you have never been alone.
We’d love to see you in person at Lincoln Park-Lynnwood United Methodist Church, 3120 Pershing Street, Knoxville, TN. Come as you are. We’re not in the judging business. We’re in the welcoming business.
