Evening journal., 1916-02-05

save. It is one OF the mysteries OF
prayer that the Father should re-
quire us to ask when He already
knows our needs. The very act "a
making petition in some way pre-
pares our hearts for the appropria-
ton OF the divine gift Had il noRX
been for the seeming disaster, III
Gripping of his physical strength 81
Jacob would doubtless never harN
sought blessing Far better it is q
limp to heaven than to leap to heldl
He would have continued TO strugg
along in his own strength until b w
ended in permanent failure. but hisl
utter defeat not only brought him tos
the position of supplanting, but Is Il
also gave him the intensity of per-
sistence that insured success.
will not let thee go, except thou blesC'
me-"
There is still another step thati
must be taken before he can enter ini
to possession OF power He. must
acknowledge his sinful conditiOnE n
The angel asks him, "What is thy1
name?" How hard it must have been
for the proud. prosperous patriarchl
to confess the truth. Yet there was
no other way. In the white light OF
the angelic presence. the blackness,
of his past life stood out i'm contrast.
He answers, It am Jacob" Jacob the
deceiver. Jacob the supplanter, the,
defrauder, the covetOus. the sin-stain-
ed The old nature had spent its
last strength-it confesses its failure.
Its weakness, its utter worthlessness.
To each Of us. the Lord puts the same
question, What is thy name?" Not.
what is your appellation by which,
you are known among men, but how,
does the recording angel designated
your personality. The world may.
speak of person as the honorable.
successful Mr.. So and So; while God,
on the other hand, declares him ai
deceiver. a swindler and a cheat. Sos
ciety speaks OF the beautiful. charm
ing Mrs. So and SO, but at the iudgt q.
ment she may be known as the scan
dal-loving. the selfish and the de-
cetful. what is thy name?" II waS'
Jacobs confession that brought hin
exaltation. "lf we confess our sinsA
He is faithful and Just 10 forgive usl
our sins" But confession must all
ways precede pardon. and the best
way to confess sins is to name them7
/ Now comes a glorious announce
ment: THY name shall be no longe-
called Jacob, but Israel" Not the
supplanter, but the prince Of God. He.
had triumphed through subsection
We would not claim that from this
time on, he was all he might have
been. but there was evidently a de-.
cided transformation in his character
In his interview with his brother, he.
shows a humble and chastened spirit
He erects an altar to the worship ot
jehovah His thought seems no long
er centered on the accumulation OF
riches and moreover, there Is inn
planted in his heart a longing to re-
turn to the communion and covenant
OF Bethel.
Cannot each OF us profitably stop to
ask ourselves. before we leave This
AnNAANr tAdfN SaAlcu Au6 NAlAVIg ~
Jabboks Ford? Is there some poine
in my life at which I am saying,
NO" to Christ? Has He had TO lay
His hand heavily upon me, and bring
me to the place Of weakness? We NAV
have wondered why there should
come the in health. the business ad-
versity. the shattering OF long-cher
ished hopes. or the death OF somef
loved one dearer than life itself. But
as we look back across the years. we
will see it was the only way the Lord
could bring us to the place OF com
plete dependence on divine strength.
and instill within our souls a hun
ger for the life that is hid with Christ
in God. But do not wait until some
heavy blow falls upon your home,
your business, or your health Plead
no previous engagement when Christ
calls. Cease to struggle against His
will Yield to Jesus. your truest
Friend, and through submission you
will come forth conQueror with the
new name OF Israel, imbued with
power for service, a victor through
obedience.