Where Do I Get the Cape?

God often surprises me. He chooses characters; He casts outside of what's expected. And I breathe out a big sigh of relief when imperfection is  on the hero's cape. I don't cheer for sin. I smile at a God so capable that He thrives on the challenge of using the unqualified for His purpose. He's just that good. It's why He can use me. Why He can use any of us: the youngest, the oldest, the scared, the overwhelmed, the unqualified-- in His battle plan.

Unlikely heroes fill the pages of the old testament, hardly church boys: assassins, adulterers, shepherd boys, and murderers. To name a few. God doesn't work off long resumes. He doesn't even look for brave hearts, or willing participants. He takes us how we are, who we are, and He does the rest. He moves mountains with mustard seeds. He promised the blessing of all blessings to a liar, to a man who refused to commit, despite all his "christian" upbringing, promising prosperity and children more numerous than the stars to a man who made ultimatums. "Then Jacob made a vow, saying, 'If God will be with me and will watch over me on this journey I am taking and will give me food to eat and clothes to wear so that I return safely to my father’s household, then the LORD will be my God. ^' " Genesis 28:20-21.

God loves Jacob, whose name means deceiver-- Jacob, who God Himself renames Israel, one who struggles with God. This Jacob wrestled with God. He fought for a blessing, despite all he'd done, the trouble he'd caused, despite all of his deception. This man struggled. He struggled to believe. And God didn't hold back goodness. "Then Jacob prayed, 'O God of my father Abraham, God of my father Isaac, LORD, you who said to me, ‘Go back to your country and your relatives, and I will make you prosper,’ I am unworthy of all the kindness and faithfulness you have shown your servant. I had only my staff when I crossed this Jordan, but now I have become two camps.' " Genesis 32:9-10. 

God used him to be the father of a nation. He used him to raise a son who would save a remnant of the earth's population from starvation. He used his seed to father the line of Christ, Savior of all. He used a man who struggled. In some way or another, don't we all? And when we do, God prevails. He always has. Always will. Even if we have to wrestle all night long.

I like the strugglers. Strugglers are real people. I struggle, struggle with perfection. And the more perfect I try to be on the outside, the less perfect my heart becomes. So, hey world, "My house is a mess. I fall asleep in my clothes, don't brush my teeth before bed, don't wash dishes after every meal, and I bribe my kids with candy." There's more. But God has never been fooled by me anyway. He loves the strugglers too; loves me and gives me a new name.

                                                           There's a superhero in us all, if God is in us.

My love sonnet from Him today is in His one penned word: prevailed.
"Thy name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel: for as a prince hast thou power with God and with men, and hast prevailed."