New Year’s Day 2026: The Crossing at Jabbok
The Jacob Simham Devotional: From Deception to Dominion
The Threshold of a New Identity
As the clock strikes midnight and the world celebrates the arrival of January 1, 2026, many of us find ourselves standing on a spiritual riverbank. In the Book of Genesis, Jacob stood at a place called the Jabbok ( Genesis 32 ). Behind him was twenty years of labor, family conflict, and the shadow of his own deceptive past. Ahead of him was the unknown—an approaching brother he had wronged and a future he could not control.
On this first day of 2026, you may feel like Jacob. You are standing between the “you” of last year and the “you” God is calling you to become. To step into the new year with the strength of a lion—the Simham spirit—we must first walk through the valley of repentance and the fires of transformation. We cannot carry the baggage of “Jacob” into the destiny of “Israel.”
Part I: The Power of Honest Confession
Jacob’s transformation did not begin with a victory; it began with a crisis that forced him to his knees. In Genesis 32:10 , Jacob utters one of the most profound confessions in Scripture: “I am unworthy of all the kindness and faithfulness you have shown your servant.”
Before Jacob could be a prince, he had to admit he was a servant. Before he could be a lion, he had to admit he had been a scavenger—living off the scraps of his own schemes. True repentance is not just saying “I’m sorry”; it is a radical admission of identity. Jacob had to admit who he was before God could tell him who he would be. This January 1st, don’t just confess what you did in 2025; confess who you have been without Him.
When we hide our true name, we hide from God’s true blessing. The moment Jacob admitted his name meant “Deceiver,” the chains of his past were broken.
Part II: The Midnight Wrestle (The Resolution of Persistence)
The most famous New Year’s resolutions often fail because they are built on human willpower. Jacob’s resolution was different. He didn’t resolve to “do better”; he resolved to not let go.
In the darkness of the night, Jacob wrestled with a Man until daybreak ( Genesis 32:24 ). When the divine messenger told him to let go, Jacob cried out, “I will not let you go unless you bless me” ( Genesis 32:26 ).
1. Resolution: Holy Persistence
In 2026, let your primary resolution be a refusal to live without God’s presence. The world will try to pull you into the “hustle culture” of self-made success. Your resolution must be to wrestle in prayer until you see the face of God. The “Simham” does not retreat; he holds his ground. Resolve to be a person of the secret place, someone who stays in the presence of God until the blessing breaks through.
2. Resolution: Embracing the Limp
Genesis 32:25 tells us that the Lord touched the socket of Jacob’s hip. He was permanently disabled. To the world, a limp is a weakness. To God, it was a trophy of grace. Resolve this year to stop hiding your scars. Your “limp”—that area of your life where you are weak and dependent—is exactly where God’s power is perfected. In 2026, we resolve to walk not in the pride of our own strength, but in the power of our dependence on Him. A lion who limps because of a touch from God is stronger than a giant who walks alone.
Part III: The “Israel” Way (A New Identity)
The climax of Jacob’s story is the renaming. “Your name will no longer be Jacob,” the man said, “but Israel, because you have struggled with God and with humans and have overcome” ( Genesis 32:28 ).
What does it mean to walk the “Israel Way” in 2026? It means living as a “Prince with God.” A prince does not have to steal his father’s inheritance; it is already his. A prince does not have to fear the “Esaus” of the world, for he is under the protection of the King.
- A New Way of Seeing Others: After his repentance, Jacob met Esau. Instead of fear, Jacob said, “To see your face is like seeing the face of God” ( Genesis 33:10 ). Your resolution for 2026 is to see the image of God in those you once considered enemies.
- A New Way of Handling Wealth: Jacob, the man who once cheated for a birthright, now insisted on giving his wealth away ( Genesis 33:11 ). He recognized that God had “dealt graciously” with him. In 2026, resolve to be a conduit of blessing rather than a reservoir of greed.
Part IV: The Return to Bethel (The Resolution of Purity)
Finally, in Genesis 35 , God calls Jacob back to Bethel—the place of the beginning. Jacob tells his household, “Get rid of the foreign gods you have with you, and purify yourselves and change your clothes” ( Genesis 35:2 ).
As we launch jacobsimham.com into this new year, we make this resolution: Purity over Popularity. We resolve to strip away the “idols” of modern life—the digital distractions, the hunger for approval, and the idols of comfort. We are returning to our “Bethel”—the place of first love, where we first heard the voice of the Father.
The 2026 New Year Prayer of Repentance and Power
Let us pray this prayer together as one community, moving from the shadow of Jacob into the light of Israel.
“Heavenly Father, Lord of the Jabbok and King of Bethel,
We stand before You on this first day of 2026, humbled by Your mercy that has brought us through another year. We do not come today with a list of demands, but with a heart of confession.
Lord, I admit that I have lived too much of my life as ‘Jacob.’ I have been a supplanter, a schemer, and a man of my own strength. I confess the times in 2025 when I tried to steal blessings that You were already willing to give. I confess my anxiety, which is really just a lack of trust in Your providence. I confess the ‘foreign gods’ I have kept in my tent—idols of success, comfort, and the opinions of men.
I lay down my name today. I lay down the identity of the ‘struggler’ and the ‘deceiver.’
Lord, wrestle with me this morning! Do not let me enter this year the same way I left the last. I will not let You go unless You bless me—not with worldly riches, but with the blessing of Your Presence. If You must touch my hip and give me a limp to keep me humble, then Lord, let it be so. I would rather limp with You than run without You.
I receive my new name today. I am a child of the King. I am redeemed. I am ‘Israel.’ In 2026, I resolve to walk in the Simham spirit—the spirit of the Lion of Judah. I will face my fears with the courage of one who has seen the face of God and lived.
I pray for my family, my work, and the community at jacobsimham.com. May this be a year of reconciliation. May we see Your face in our brothers and sisters. May our lives be a ‘Bethel’—a house where You dwell and where the world can see the ladder reaching down from Heaven.
Purify our hearts, renew our minds, and lead us into the destiny You have written for us before the foundations of the world.
In the mighty and transformative name of Jesus Christ, our Lord and our Redeemer,
Amen.“
The Roar of the Redeemed
Jacob began as a man who grabbed heels in the dark. He ended as a patriarch who blessed nations in the light. Today, January 1, 2026, the Lord is asking you: “What is your name?”
The Jabbok is behind you. The sun is rising over Peniel. Walk forward into 2026, for you have seen the face of God, and your life has been spared. You are no longer who you were. The Lion has roared, and the Prince has risen.
Happy New Year from Jacob Simham!
