Guest blog by Christie Loboda

After the Mountaintop

At the end of Genesis chapter 33 we find Jacob at the end of a glorious mountaintop experience.  He had just reconciled with his brother Esau in a way that only God could have made happen.  He built an altar and for the first time called on God - not as the God of Abraham and Isaac but as his own.  Have you ever had those kind of mountaintop experiences - times when you really knew God's presence, recognized His hand, knew you were smack dab in the center of His will?  In the very next chapter we find that Jacob has chosen to settle a bit shy of God's goal for him and things begin to crumble.  There is no mention of God at all in this chapter.  Is he relying on that mountaintop experience to get him through?  Am I guilty of relying on "once in a while" experiences, "once in a while" conversations?  I must not live my life relying on once in a while!  I need daily time with Him, daily conversations, daily submission, daily renewal, daily obedience, daily guidance, daily help, strength, growth … and on and on!

What past experiences are you relying on?  Where have you settled - by way of convenience, comfort, avoidance, laziness, compromise … rather than God's place for you?

How will you determine today to spend time with Him daily?

Col 1:9 … We ask God to give you complete knowledge of his will and to give you spiritual wisdom and understanding. ¹⁰ Then the way you live will always honor and please the Lord, and your lives will produce every kind of good fruit. All the while, you will grow as you learn to know God better and better. (NLT)