05/12/2019
It said that our eyes are the windows to our soul, but as much as they are the windows, our hands are the conveyors of it. Hands say anger, they say sadness, they say exhaustion, but above all else they say love. What are your hands telling the world about you today, and what are the hands of God, and others, telling you?
“That they should seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after him, and find him, though he be not far from every one of us: For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring.”
Acts 17:27-28 KJV
I read a comment that a good friend wrote yesterday about her mother’s hands, and it blessed me. I sat there with tears in my eyes and thought about my own 93 year old mother’s hands, and how whenever I visit her she gently cradles my face in them, and looking into my eyes, tells me how much she loves me. In truth she had already said that without uttering a word. Our hands reveal the emotion of our soul... speaking soul to soul.
As our initial scripture reading said, we feel after God, but we also lay hands on those in need of prayer,
“Then children were brought to him that he might lay his hands on them and pray. The disciples rebuked the people, but Jesus said, "Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven." And he laid his hands on them and went away.”
Matthew 19:13-15 ESV
we receive the Holy Spirit by them,
“And when Paul had laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they began speaking in tongues and prophesying.”
Acts 19:6 ESV
we bring sacrifice by lifting them,
“Let my prayer be counted as incense before you, and the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice!”
Psalms 141:2 ESV
they heal us,
“Now when the sun was setting, all those who had any who were sick with various diseases brought them to him, and he laid his hands on every one of them and healed them.”
Luke 4:40 ESV
they perform miracles,
“And God was doing extraordinary miracles by the hands of Paul,”
Acts 19:11 ESV
they bless us,
“And he took them in his arms and blessed them, laying his hands on them.”
Mark 10:16 ESV
and they allow us to bless God,
“Lift up your hands to the holy place and bless the Lord!”
Psalms 134:2 ESV
then, in our sinful humiliation, we drop them limp to our sides in contrition.
“Therefore lift your drooping hands and strengthen your weak knees, and make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be put out of joint but rather be healed.”
Hebrews 12:12-13 ESV
Hands speak a language only our souls know how to express, and God’s hands speak back to us in kind...
“Behold, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands; your walls are continually before me.”
Isaiah 49:16 ESV
likewise, the scared hands of Jesus tell the story of His love for us, and how His hands can bring us to our faith.
“Then he said to Thomas, "Put your finger here, and see my hands; and put out your hand, and place it in my side. Do not disbelieve, but believe."”
John 20:27 ESV
So today is Mother’s Day, and even if your mother has passed away, you remember her voice and words, and can see her face, but more than anything else, you feel her love by recalling her hands, and their touch. You feel her hands with your heart, and you are inexplicably with her once again in your soul... soul to soul.
Prayer:
Father, I thank you for your hands that protect me, provide for me, and love me. I thank you for the language our hands allow our souls to speak, and the closeness I feel to you through them. I thank you also for the emotion my hands convey to my neighbors, family, and others. I thank you for the hands of Jesus that bridged heaven, hell, and earth, by his sacrifice and the role his obedient and loving hands played in that. Holy, Holy, Holy are you my God whose hand remains upon me, and by whose hands I am blessed. Great is your love that I feel by your touch, and the touch of your messengers in my life. Praised be your name for the language we share... soul to soul, and hand to hand. I worship you with raised hands and long for your touch! All glory is your Father, and your grace is extended by the scarred hands of Jesus.
Father thank you for our mothers today, and for their hands that love us. Thank you Gracious Lord that, even in death, we hear them speak to our souls by the feel of their hands.
“Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us, and establish the work of our hands upon us; yes, establish the work of our hands!”
Psalms 90:17 ESV
Rich Forbes