The Power of Lifted Hands

Have you ever noticed what it means when someone lifts their hands in a battle? It’s a sign of surrender — a way of saying, “I need help. I need protection.”

In the same way, people express prayer in different forms: some kneel, some lift their hands, and others fall on their faces before God. But there is something uniquely powerful about raising our hands to Him.

The Bible shows this clearly in the story of Moses [Exodus 17:11-12 NIV]. When his hands were lifted, God’s power flowed toward His people in the battle. When his hands dropped, the enemy grew stronger. Seeing this, his companions held up his hands so the victory would not stop.

Lifting our hands is more than just a posture — it’s a way of asking God to bring His strength into our weakness. Just like Moses experienced God’s help when his hands were raised, we also see another example in Jacob. His life teaches us how to reach out to God and receive help from the Almighty.

Jacob’s Story – Introduction

Summary of Genesis 29–32 - Jacob’s life was filled with struggles, mistakes, and unexpected blessings.

He had cheated his brother Esau and had to run away from home. In a faraway land, he worked for his uncle Laban — a man who also deceived him. Jacob married both Leah and Rachel, built a large family, and became wealthy. But eventually, tension and conflict grew between him and Laban.

God then told Jacob to return home. This frightened him because he had to face Esau—the brother he had cheated to receive Isaac’s blessing. Jacob didn’t know if Esau would forgive him or attack him.

Jacob’s Situation in Simple Points

• One side: His past mistakes and sins were catching up with him through Esau.

• Another side: His father-in-law Laban was chasing him with anger and accusations.

• Another side: He had the huge responsibility of moving his entire family and all his belongings.

The night before meeting Esau, Jacob was terrified. He feared revenge. So he prayed earnestly and held on to God for help.

Just Like Jacob, We Also Face Tough Situations

Many of us know what it feels like to be pulled in different directions, just like Jacob was.

• Sometimes we make choices we regret — these decisions that take us away from God’s path and trouble our hearts with regret.

• Bills, debts, and financial responsibilities can press on us we feel there is breathless state, we are desperate for some help from someone.

• Work and business stress can drain us, especially when we are trying to meet deadlines, keep up with expectations, or simply survive the day with challenges in business to keep it going.

• Sickness in our bodies or problems in our families can shake us deeply, leaving us tired and worried with very little energy to get back to what we need to do.

• And there are days when everything seems to happen at once — pressure from every side, with no clear way out.

• Take one step, you are pulled down in 3 to 4 sides to weigh down.

Jacob’s story reminds us that we are not alone in these moments. God meets us right in the middle of our struggles.

[Genesis 32:22–30 NIV] 22 That night Jacob got up and took his two wives, his two female servants and his eleven sons and crossed the ford of the Jabbok. 23 After he had sent them across the stream, he sent over all his possessions. 24 So Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him till daybreak. 25 When the man saw that he could not overpower him, he touched the socket of Jacob's hip so that his hip was wrenched as he wrestled with the man. 26 Then the man said, "Let me go, for it is daybreak." But Jacob replied, "I will not let you go unless you bless me." 27 The man asked him, "What is your name?" "Jacob," he answered. 28 Then the man said, "Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God and with humans and have overcome." 29 Jacob said, "Please tell me your name." But he replied, "Why do you ask my name?" Then he blessed him there. 30 So Jacob called the place Peniel, saying, "It is because I saw God face to face, and yet my life was spared."

Four Things Jacob Did in His Prayer to receive answer from God

1. He got up in the night to pray. “Gen 32:22 That night Jacob got up…” — He didn’t wait for the next day. He acted immediately.

2. He separated himself from his family and belongings. “Gen 32:24 So Jacob was left alone…” — He needed quiet time with God without distractions.

3. He prayed and wrestled with God from night until morning. “Gen 32:24(b) …a man wrestled with him till daybreak.” — He didn’t give up; he kept praying until sunrise.

4. He refused to let go until God blessed him. “Gen 32:26 I will not let you go unless you bless me.” — Jacob held on with determination and desperation.

Lessons for us to Learn :

Often our prayers are quick, and we depend on others to pray for us. But God is full of compassion, he expects us to ask him and seek him, when we take even one step toward Him, He moves heaven to help us.

So ask yourself:

• How often have I prayed like Jacob?

• Have I prayed in the night?

• Have I prayed alone?

• Have I wrestled in prayer for my breakthrough?

• Have I held on to God and asked boldly for His blessing and deliverance?

Jacob’s example calls us to pray with persistence and hunger for God.

What Happens When We Pray Like Jacob

1. Bethel Experience

[Genesis 28:10–12 NIV] 10 Jacob left Beersheba and set out for Harran. 11 When he reached a certain place, he stopped for the night because the sun had set. Taking one of the stones there, he put it under his head and lay down to sleep. 12 He had a dream in which he saw a stairway resting on the earth, with its top reaching to heaven, and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it.

Genesis 28:10–12 tells us how Jacob stopped to rest for the night and had a dream. In that dream, he saw a stairway reaching from earth to heaven, and God’s angels were going up and down on it. Jacob later called that place Bethel, which means “House of God.”

What Is the Bethel Experience? Bethel represents:

• A place where heaven touches earth

• A place where God’s angels move (A ladder where they ascend and descend)

• A place where God’s presence is real (Bethel means House of God.)

Jacob experienced Bethel earlier in his life, and later—during a time of deep fear and trouble—he prayed again at night. This time God met him in a new way and moved him from the Bethel experience to a deeper Peniel experience, where he wrestled with God and received a blessing.

How We Experience Bethel Today ?

As believers, we can also experience God’s presence like Jacob did. Here’s how:

• Praise God by His Names - When we praise God using His names—Abba Father, El Elyon, El Roi, Jehovah Jireh, Jehovah Rapha, Jehovah Shalom, Immanuel, Ebenezer, El Shaddai, and many more—our hearts open to His presence. (You can refer to this list for more praise names: 1000 Praises – https://1000praises.weebly.com)

• Praise Again and Again - Praise weakens the enemy’s power. The devil cannot stay where God’s name is being lifted up.

• Praise Opens Heaven - When we praise, heaven responds. God moves into our situation just like the angels moved on Jacob’s staircase.

• Praise Connects Us to Heaven’s Worship In Revelation 4:8–11, worship never stops in heaven. When we praise, we join that heavenly worship, and God’s presence becomes real to us.

• Praise Purifies and Redeems - Praise cleans our hearts and brings us into God’s light.

• Praise Invites God to Move - Praise is like opening a door for God to come into our situation—just like Jacob encountered God at Bethel.

• Praise Breaks Spiritual Barriers - When we praise in the Spirit (Revelation 4:2), obstacles fall and God’s presence fills our hearts.

• Jacob Met God; We Receive the Holy Spirit - Jacob wrestled with “a man” (whom he later recognised as God) in Genesis 32:24. But we have something even better—the Holy Spirit Himself, promised to stay with us forever(John 14:16).

• This Experience Is Not Temporary - God’s presence is not a one-time moment. He promises to be with us always.

Whatever be the situation, try the 1000 Praises points from the link https://1000praises.weebly.com to Praise God for a minimum of 20 to 30 min to see God’s deliverance hand with you.

2. The Battle in Prayer

When we pray, there are often two battles happening at the same time:

1. Fighting the enemy

2. Fighting our own self, which sometimes allows the enemy to succeed.

Many times, God has already fought for us. But if our own heart, mind, or habits get in the way to be a roadblock for God to open the deliverance door hence the door to breakthrough stays closed. That’s why the battle is twofold — and we need both hands in prayer.

The Enemy Works in Two Ways

Internal:

• Our weak flesh - [Matthew 26:41 NIV] 41 "Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak."

• Our tendency to faint or give up due to our determination - [Luke 18:1 NIV] 1 Then Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not give up.

• Our ignorance or lack of understanding - [Romans 8:26 NIV] 26 In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans.

External:

• Spiritual powers and dark forces (Daniel 10:12‑14 / Ephesians 6:12-13)

Our Support in Prayer is Twofold

• The Holy Spirit fights our internal battles to intercede with the father - [Romans 8:26-27 NIV] 26 In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. 27 And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God's people in accordance with the will of God.

• Jesus Christ, who won on the cross, fights the external powers for us [Romans 8:34 NIV] 34 Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died--more than that, who was raised to life--is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us.

This is beautifully illustrated in the Amalekite battle (Exodus 17:11‑12), where God’s power worked through Moses’ lifted hands.

Our God is Jehovah Nissi, fights for His people from one generation to the next (Exodus 17:15‑16). And His promise is the same for us today.

3. Jacob Refused to Let Go and Was Blessed

[Genesis 32:26 NIV] 26 Then the man said, "Let me go, for it is daybreak." But Jacob replied, "I will not let you go unless you bless me."

Jacob’s breakthrough came when he said, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.”

• When we surrender to God and say, “Father, lead me and bless me,” we enter a Peniel experience—meeting God face-to-face and receiving His blessing.

• God fights our battles and opens the door for His blessings.

• Did you know? God delights in blessing His children. He loves to pour out good things on us, and His creation itself is a beautiful example of His care and generosity.

• Like a father who rewards his children, he longs to reward for us for our prayers.

Example from Scripture:

• When Joshua fought the Amorites he prayed to God, he answered his prayer - [Joshua 10:8 NIV] 8 The LORD said to Joshua, "Do not be afraid of them; I have given them into your hand. Not one of them will be able to withstand you."

• As a response to Joshua’s promise in the battle against Amorites, God stopped the sun to give Israel victory (Joshua 10:12‑14). [Joshua 10:12-14 NIV] 12 On the day the LORD gave the Amorites over to Israel, Joshua said to the LORD in the presence of Israel: "Sun, stand still over Gibeon, and you, moon, over the Valley of Aijalon." 13 So the sun stood still, and the moon stopped, till the nation avenged itself on its enemies, as it is written in the Book of Jashar. The sun stopped in the middle of the sky and delayed going down about a full day. 14 There has never been a day like it before or since, a day when the LORD listened to a human being. Surely the LORD was fighting for Israel!

• God fought for them, gave them supernatural power, and blessed them to succeed.

• We too inherit this promise from God when we battle he will be with us as we walk in trouble [Isaiah 43:2 NIV] 2 When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze.

Prayer Transforms (Jacob to Israel / Bethel to Peniel)

Transformational Blessing for Jacob

• Jacob became Israel—a man completely transformed by God.

• He met God face-to-face, and his life was never the same.

• His faith was strengthened, and he walked boldly, fully depending on God.

• His own plans gave way to God’s plans. Interestingly, Esau accepted everything Jacob offered without conflict—completely opposite of what Jacob expected.

Sometimes, God delays His blessings. These delays test whether we truly trust Him or are only seeking blessings for our own sake.

• We need to wait patiently, trust fully, and stay in faith, no matter the circumstances.

• Delays are meant to realign us with God’s perfect plan.

• Often, what seems like an unanswered prayer is actually God’s way of giving us something better than we asked for.

• We can praise God even in delays and struggles, following Scripture:  [1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 NIV] 16 Rejoice always, 17 pray continually, 18 give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.

So make a commitment to lift your hands and pray — to seek God alone in the night, just you and Him. Wrestle in prayer and pursue His presence until His blessing rests on you.