Struggle

Jason Minnix explores how new possibilities open up when we bring our real struggles into our connection with God [Genesis 32:23-31].

 

Reflection

1. Where am I being called to pull away and be with my deeper work?
2. How am I being invited to wrestle with God?
3. Where do I sense a new day emerging?

 

Spiritual Practice

1. Take an hour for solitude this week and meet God in your shadow. (Take any intense emotion or judgment you have of another person and see it as a mirror to your own healing and unfolding.)
2. Forgive your life for being what it is.
3. What kind of wrestling is meaningful to me now?

 

Resources

1. Video: Sheena Melwani

 

MWG Discussion Questions

1. How does the metaphor of our unaddressed struggles as a beach ball, forced underwater until they break out above the surface with equal force resonate with you?  In what ways have you experienced this dynamic?
2. If “shadow boxing” with God is where we learn to process the negative emotions that can be overlooked/buried/blamed on other people, how might this practice look like for you and how can solitude help in that process?
3. If God seeing the dirty, messy, and undone parts of you is a sacred opportunity to build intimacy with him, what are the challenges that prevent us from engaging in this way (e.g. our need for control)?
4. Wrestling with God can be as diverse as playful banter or cursing God out. Do either of these (or the other examples) feel particularly resonant to what you’re experiencing in your life right now? Are there any that make you feel uncomfortable? Are there ways you can bring more joy to your struggle with God?