We’ve all been in the waiting room of life. We’ve waited for the medical report, sometimes for weeks on end as doctors figured out diagnoses. We’ve waited for jobs and financial breakthroughs, wondering how we’ll pay the next mortgage or make it through the next month. We’ve waited for admissions to colleges, asking ourselves if we have what it takes. We’ve waited for relationships to be reconciled, wondering if broken fences will ever be mended. We’ve waited for a child, perhaps as fertility treatments failed, wondering if we can go through the emotional agony of hope and disappointment again. There’s an uncertainty that weaves itself through the waiting. In our reading today we saw Jacob waiting to meet his estranged brother, Esau. They had parted on hostile terms, with Esau vowing to kill Jacob for his deceptive actions that robbed him of his inheritance and his birthright. But twenty years on, Jacob wants to make amends with his brother. Would his once-angry brother still be vengeful? Jacob’s uncertainty gives way to full-fledged fear. He starts concocting imaginary “What if” scenarios in his mind. Genesis 32: 7 says that “In great fear and distress Jacob divided the people who were with him into two groups, and the flocks and herds and camels as well. He thought, “If Esau comes and attacks one group, the group that is left may escape.”” But in the midst of his “great fear and distress,” he does a marvelous thing—Jacob turns to God in prayer. He proclaims who God is, he acknowledges what God has done for him, he confesses his fears to God, and he remembers God’s promises to him. Later that night, there unfolds a powerful yet poignant scene as God meets with Jacob in a wrestling contest. In that intimate encounter with God, Jacob, although injured, receives a new name and a blessing. The next morning, Jacob walks with a limp into the embrace of his brother Esau. In the face of your uncertain situation, when you feel the ground underneath you shift, turn to God in prayer as Jacob did. Humble yourself under His mighty hand and He will lift you up in due time. Stay locked into Jesus. Don’t let go of Him. Persevere in prayer. Your circumstances may not always change. But God will arm you with the courage to walk with a dependence on Him and a boldness that comes from Him. Let’s pray: Father God, The fear of the unknown can leave me paralyzed. Often, I tend to create stories in my mind of what lies ahead. I tend to magnify my problems and my circumstances. Lord, I pray that, instead, I would magnify You as You are sovereign over all my circumstances. You are the all-powerful God who engages with me, who strengthens me, who gives me the courage to walk with boldness into uncertain and fearful situations. The ground may be shaky, but I know I can trust my God, the Rock who was cleft for me. On Christ the Solid Rock I stand. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

That Settles It! I was in a very broken place prior to receiving the Lord as my personal Savior. The night I invited Him into my heart was a transformational turning point for me. I knew I was a different person, a new creation, and yet so much remained in upheaval. Then my life was forever changed when I heard Dr. Oral Roberts preach a powerful sermon in which he emphatically declared, “God said it. I believe it. That settles it!” Those faith-infused declarations entered my heart that day and produced a fiery passion for the life-giving Word of God that continues to burn in me today. Following this significant revelation, it became my practice to daily seek the Lord for insight concerning the life situations that I was facing. In prayer, I searched the Scriptures. I found that, consistently and faithfully, the Holy Spirit would reveal God’s will, perspective, and promises through His Word. Once I understood His will concerning something, I learned to commit myself to the truth of His Word and “settle it.” No matter what happened, I allowed the Word to be my plumb line. By faith, I commanded everything to come into alignment with the Word. And continuously, I began to witness answers to prayer, breakthroughs, and empowerments that yielded success in God-appointed endeavors. Faith grew in me as I determined to settle any issue in life according to His Word and its power to transform and create. Over the many years since, I have exercised scriptural decrees for life issues both large and small, watching God move faithfully in response to the command of His own Word. Decreeing His Word has brought peace, love, wisdom, healing, freedom, and prosperity. God’s Word is always true whether people believe it or not, but without faith, the Word will not be activated. Every blessing and promise in the Word belongs to every believer but many do not see these promises manifest in their lives because they fail to access them by faith. God desires all His people to live in His divine order and blessings. Decreeing His Word establishes His will and purpose in and through our lives. You and I were created to decree His Word. Remember the simple statement: God said it. I believe it. That settles it! Decree Divine Character: Through Jesus, God’s divine power has granted me everything that pertains to life and to godliness.