Day 18

Genesis 35–36 | Mark 7:31–8:10

“And God said to him, ‘Your name is Jacob; no longer shall your name be called Jacob, but Israel shall be your name.’ So he called his name Israel.” (Genesis 35:10)

Genesis 35 is a turning point. God calls Jacob back to Bethel—the very place where He first spoke to him in a dream. But this return isn’t just about geography. It’s about restoration.

Jacob had spent years running—first from Esau, then from Laban, then from the fallout of his own choices. His life had been marked by striving, deception, and struggle. And yet, when God calls him back, He doesn’t rebuke him for his past failures. He doesn’t remind Jacob of his mistakes. Instead, He reaffirms His covenant and renames him once again: “You are not Jacob. You are Israel.”

It’s not that Jacob hadn’t already received this name—God first gave it to him after their wrestling match in Genesis 32. But here, God is confirming it. Restoring it. Because sometimes, we need to be reminded of who we are in Him.

I get that.

After my injury, restoration felt like an impossible word. In those early days, I wasn’t thinking about healing—I was thinking about what I had lost. My mind kept replaying the accident, trying to rewrite a moment that was already written. I kept fixating on how things used to be, how I wanted them to be again.

But restoration isn’t about going back. It’s about what God is doing now.

In Mark 7, Jesus heals a man who is deaf and mute. He doesn’t just heal him with a word—He takes him aside, touches him, looks to heaven, and sighs deeply before saying, “Be opened.” It’s a deeply personal restoration, a reminder that God doesn’t just fix what’s broken—He makes it new.

That’s what He’s been teaching me. My hand will never be what it was, but God isn’t interested in taking me backward. He’s leading me forward. And in that process, He’s restoring far more than I expected—not just physically, but spiritually. He’s reminding me, like He reminded Jacob, that my identity isn’t in what I’ve lost. It’s in who He is.

Jacob left Bethel knowing that he was still part of God’s plan. The healed man in Mark 7 left knowing his life would never be the same. And me? I’m learning that restoration isn’t always immediate. It’s often slow. Uncomfortable. But always worth it.

Lord, You are the God who restores. When I long for what was, remind me of what You are doing now. Help me trust that Your work is always for my good and Your glory. Amen.