An Altar With My Name On It

I preached this a couple of years ago but felt impressed to recyle today. Was quite timely for CUPC. Tracie stepped in and left a personal testimony of her first real altar experience as a young person. Thanks Doni for "fixin" the pic. Enjoy....rks

Jacob was a man in perpetual motion…

Strife was his even inside Rebecca’s womb…

Striving for what was not his…

Esau’s heel, birthright and blessing…

He grabbed for Rachel but gripped Leah …..

He struggled with Laban for Rachal and the spotted cows…

Finally his constant striving found him running from his troubles again straight back to where the trouble began…

Struggling with an angel in the middle of the night…

But in all reality Jacob struggled with Jacob…

Who is the man you wrestle with when you are all alone?

Wrestling with himself he came face to face with divinity…

Marked for life he refused to turn loose until he was blessed…

What is your name?

My name is Sneak Supplanter Conniving Manipulator…

But you can call me Jake…

Jacob left the encounter Israel…

A Prince with Prevailing Power…

Israel left the encounter the man he had always wanted to be….

He made things right with his brother…

And built a house in Shelem…

Shelem was the place of completion…

Things were now almost complete in his life…

Israel lived in a new place …

Israel had a new name…

Israel had a new way of thinking…

Israel needed a new altar…

And he erected there an altar, and called it Elelohe-Israel Gen 18:20…

He called his altar The Mighty God of Israel…

For the first time in his life Israel worshipped at an altar he had built for himself…

He did not name it The Mighty God of Abraham…

He did not name it The Mighty God of Isaac..

But today he put his name on his altar...

The Mighty God of Israel...

Building an altar with ones on name on it is so necessary…

If I can build an altar with my name on it I will be in business with God…

I need to leave my tear stains on that altar…

The oil from my hands need to darken it and leave smudges…

If I can but crawl myself up to it and pile a rock or two...

If I can but leave a scratch on it...

If somehow I can leave my name etched on it saying that I was here and this altar is mine...

If I leave smeared blood on it that will be fine...

For I know...

My daddy's altar won't work for me...

Grandaddy's altar will be of no effect...

I must build one myself...

And it must have my name on it...

RKS