“So He said to him, “What is your name?” He said, “Jacob.”””

— Genesis 32:27 NKJV

It’s important for us to recognize that names in the Bible carry meaning that describes a person’s character and identity. So by asking Jacob what his name was, this Person, who Jacob sees as an angel, was actually asking him what he thinks his character and identity is. Therefore, by looking up at Him and saying, “Jacob”, he was basically saying, “My name is deceiver.” This is actually what the name Jacob means. This name was given to him because of the characteristics he displayed in the event surrounding his and his twin, Esau’s, birth. Jacob has embodied the identity of liar, manipulator and supplanter. He acted as such, because this is who he actually believed he was. But in order for God to move Jacob to the next step in breaking him free from identifying himself by this generational cycle, He needed to bring him to this place of awareness of what his name, character flaws and identity has been in order for him to confess it, which is essentially telling the truth about yourself in light of the truth about God. You see, God intervenes into your personal crisis to break generational cycles that have shaped your identity by leading you to…

BE AWARE OF AND CONFESS WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR IDENTITY.

From about halfway through my time in high school on I had a developing sleep condition that affected my academics, work around the house, work on the job and worst of all, my driving. When my wife Deedre and I started dating she picked up on the nature of my sleep condition and recommended that I get evaluated at a sleep center. Well, at the time, this unfortunately translated to me as being a bit unnecessary and chipped at my pride as being a form of weakness, because I felt all I need to do was get more sleep at night and exercise, and I’d be fine. So in my stubbornness and denial to the nature of my condition, I put off her recommendation to get tested. Then after we got married I finally got tested. I was diagnosed with a mild form of narcolepsy which makes it easy for me to fall asleep unless I get 8 hours of sleep at night, a nap in the early afternoon and take some medication. Yet, even after this, I continued on without taking the recommendations seriously enough until seven years later I almost got in an accident with my pregnant wife in the car, because I was starting to fall asleep at the wheel. This woke me up to the reality that I could not longer be in denial about my condition. I had to be aware of my narcolepsy and confess that I had it, in order for me to get the help I so desperately needed. And this what God needs us to do so He can break the generational cycles that have defined us!

You need to be aware of the fact that you have inherited some things that are generational cycles that have become apart of who you think you are. They have shaped your identity thus far and it does you no good to be in denial of them. And often what happens is that these traits you’ve inherited become triggered or awakened by things in your regular environment, especially by your experiences within your family. There are likely environmental things that you had no control over, like Jacob, the deceiver, being deceived by his uncle Laban. Yet, you must not let this be an excuse you use to explain away the choices you made to participate in the cycles that have shaped your identity.

You just need to be aware of it, own your contribution to it, name it and confess it to God. God can’t free you from what you refuse to confess. Freedom from the cycle that’s had you bound comes when you bring it out into the light of God’s love, acceptance and power.

Once you’ve become aware of and confessed the generational cycle that’s shaped your identity, now God can move you to the next and most powerful step in breaking them. Let’s go back and see how this plays out in Jacob’s experience beginning in verse 28…

The Generational Cycle Breaker Pt.3

BE AWARE OF AND CONFESS WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR IDENTITY.

Stayed tuned for Part Four…