There comes a time in your walk with the Lord when you have to pour everything out, and I do mean everything. The pain, the pride, the questions, the fear, and whatever else you may be holding on to. You reach a point where breakthrough isn’t about more doing, it’s about deeper surrender.
We say we’re waiting on God. But if we’re honest? More often, He’s the One waiting on us.
Waiting for us to cross the ford Jabbok.
“And he rose up that night, and took his two wives, and his two womenservants, and his eleven sons, and passed over the ford Jabbok.” Genesis 32:22 KJV
Let’s unpack this.
What Is the Ford of Jabbok?
A ford is a shallow place in a river where you cross over. And Jabbok? In Hebrew, it means:
to empty out, to pour forth, and to wrestle and struggle until you’re poured out.
So this wasn’t just a geographical crossing, it was a spiritual encounter. “The Ford of Jabbok” literally means: The place where you are emptied. The crossing where transformation begins.
But there’s more.
In the Hebrew picture language, Jabbok gives us the imagery of:
“The hand that works within the house to bring a cycle to completion.”
This suggests a divine inner work, an appointed breaking point where God lovingly confronts what has to die so new life can begin.
I Don’t Know About You, But I Need a New Season, and Jabbok is where that season begins.
You don’t casually cross Jabbok.
You cross with a decision, to be emptied of fear, of striving, of false identity, and false strength.
It’s where God pours into you the truth of who you really are.
And guess what? Jacob didn’t cross alone.
His wives, his children, all that he had, crossed over too.
So will you.
So will your family.
God’s not just transforming you, He’s transferring the promise through you.
The Wrestle at Jabbok
“And Jacob was left alone; and there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day…” Genesis 32:24-29 KJV
Jacob was left alone, and God does His deepest work in isolation.
The word “wrestled” in Hebrew is ’abaq, meaning to entangle, to grapple, to kick up dust.
It was physical, yes, but also spiritual.
Jacob wasn’t just fighting for a blessing, he was fighting for identity. He was confronting the cycles of deception, fear, and striving that followed him his whole life.
The Hebrew picture meaning of ’abaq?
“The strong one in the house who confronts cycles.”
Jacob wasn’t fighting an enemy.
He was fighting to break through to destiny.
He was wrestling not just with a man, but with legacy, identity, and calling.
Sometimes God Touches What You Lean On
Jacob’s thigh was put out of joint.
Not to harm him, but to humble him.
The “touch” wasn’t violent, it was surgical. Strategic. Necessary. Because when you’ve survived your whole life in fight or flight like me,
God has to touch what you’ve leaned on to teach you to lean on Him.
That’s where I am.
I’m in that wrestle.
I feel the ache, the weight, the fatigue.
And yet, I will not let go.
Because the breaking of day is near.
What’s on the Other Side of Jabbok?
Redefinition.
Identity.
Blessing.
“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.” Genesis 32:28
Jacob didn’t win the fight.
He prevailed because he refused to give up.
And that’s where God met him.
Sister, sometimes your greatest win is your refusal to walk away.
You May Be at Your Own Jabbok Right Now
Wrestling in isolation
Facing cycles of trauma
Tired, weary, feeling forgotten
Trying to hold on to the promises of God when nothing looks like they’re coming to pass
Let me speak this over you:
Jabbok isn’t your end. It’s your crossing.
You won’t leave it the same.
You’ll leave it transformed. Limping… yes. But blessed.
Broken… but whole.
Because wrestling with God is never for destruction, it’s for redefinition.
And in case you forgot…
You are not just fighting for a blessing, you are becoming the blessing.
Final Word
This place may hurt.
But it’s also holy.
You are not cursed, you’re being emptied.
Not discarded, but prepared.
Not overlooked, but renamed.
So rise up, beloved.
Take everything you have.
And cross over your Jabbok.
Because on the other side…
Is destiny.
By Sherita Jones | The Anointed Grace
