There are moments in my life that will stick with me forever, and this is one of them. After an emergency C-Section, after my son being immediately taken from his mother’s womb and placed on an infant table in the OR and having his mouth and nose suctioned for meconium, I was finally holding him. I knew not what the future may hold, but I did know that the son I had in my arms was holding my hand, and I would do my best to never let him go.
This reminds me of how hard we as Christians try to work out what it means to be a follower of Christ, and yet, how often do we reach out to grab His hands? I know that I am many times tempted to lean on my own strength, and yet, my son does not have to rely on himself for anything, and this is how Christ described God: The Father. Personally, I love this picture, and I love thinking through the sacrifices my wife and I make every day to take care of our son, and comparing our limited ability with the love of God the Father. He will never leave us nor forsake us, but just like I am learning with my son’s sleep schedule, sometimes He will leave the room.
God’s hands. We Christians are called the body of Christ. Reading the book of Acts this morning, I was convicted on how much time I can spend thinking through what the right thing to do is, and how much I don’t go out and hold people’s hands. If we are the hands of God, and He is the Father, then my prayer for myself is that I can have more moments where hands in need are placed in my hand. Whether my son, or someone else’s, whether an abused woman, an abandoned child in a 50 year old’s body or a confused generation.
Just like there is a time to put my son down to sleep, for his good, so there is a time that hands do more than hold. But, this is the first picture. Holding, promising, cherishing are all the promises of my hand and my son’s. As a Christian, I pray God that I will have the opportunity to listen and reason in love with those who disagree with me. I pray that I can reach out in the all encompassing love of our Lord, Helper and Father. How can you serve a neighbor today?
