God’s gift of . . .

Holy Hands

Prayer is something that we might talk about and even write about more than we actually do it . . . “One can believe intellectually in the efficacy [effectiveness] of prayer and never do any praying.” (Catherine Marshall)  . . .  So obviously, we need to go beyond talking, writing, and thinking about prayer, and instead actually pray—and pray more.

“Lord, let all the faithful pray to you while you may be found . . .
You are my hiding place; you will protect me from trouble
    and surround me with songs of deliverance.”
Psalm 32:6-7 

Will we ever truly understand just how important prayer is?

How important is prayer in your life?

Do you willingly have a daily conversation with God?  . . . heart to heart, soul to soul?

Proper prayer isn’t about the position of the body . . . it’s about the attitude of the heart and spirit . . . it’s about humility. . . . it’s about engaging the mind, heart, and soul with God.

God just wants us to be humble . . . It’s not about ‘telling God what to do’ . . .  It’s about direct access to Him . . . We don’t have to go through a priest, or a preacher to talk to God . . . just submit to Him humbly in prayer through our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ . . . As we humble ourselves before Him and express our total dependence upon Him, He will hear us and answer . . . 
So, bow your head, lie in your bed, fall on your knees, lift up your hands—as long as you’re sincere, God will hear. 

The emphasis is that the most important attitude in prayer is not an outward carriage of the body, but an inward posture of the heart . . . Our hearts are to be broken, remorseful, humble, and dependent as we lay out our prayers to God . . . By His grace and mercy, God guides our hearts to grow in love, devotion, and relationship with Him . . . Communicating with God through our Lord Jesus Christ is an unbelievable privilege  . . . and our mindset, both inward and outward, should demonstrate our sincere devotion and gratitude to the Lord.

INSIGHT . . .

So . . . What about our hands?

Hands are significant . . . Our hands touch every area of our lives . . . There is nothing pertaining to our daily lives that we don’t put our hands into in some way.

Hands can also be extended to receive God's blessings or to give praise and glory to Him, which emphasizes the role of our hands in our relationship with God . . .  They are a symbol in prayer . . . As we pray, there is so much to do with our hands . . . No single way is wrong  . . . If raising your hands allows you to praise God, then go ahead!  . . . If keeping them together discreetly allows you to open up your heart and soul, then go ahead!  . . . Folded, open, palm-to-palm, cupped . . . it doesn’t matter as long as the focus is communicating with your Father.

“I want the men [and women] everywhere to pray,
lifting up holy hands without anger or disputing.”
1 Timothy 2:8

When we lift our hands to heaven—our hearts, our souls, our minds, our thoughts—we present everything we are, everything our hands represent about each of us, everything we have done, and everything we have to God . . . When we lift our hands in worship, we are lifting up our families, our loved ones, our relationships, our work, our money, our whole lives to our Father . . .  and we should leave anger, quarreling, and disagreements behind.

In 1 Timothy, Paul specifically said that he wished all men [and women] everywhere would lift up “holy” hands . . . The word “holy” describes something that is sanctified, devoted, or dedicated to God . . . so, when Paul wrote of lifting up “holy” hands, he was saying deeply hoped that men everywhere would present themselves as dedicated and consecrated to God . . . and he’s saying, “Lift holy hands. Lift pure hands. Do it with peace and without quarreling.”

What does God see in you when you lift your hands to heaven?

Are you even paying attention to what you are doing or saying . . . or are you sincere, humble, and respectful of who you are talking to?

INVITATION—TO TALK WITH GOD . . .

“For I am the Lord your God who takes hold of your right hand
and says to you, ‘Do not fear; I will help you.’”
Isaiah 41:13

Lifting your hands to the Lord . . . bringing your life to Him . . . giving it all and yielding yourself to the Lord’s will . . . When we lift our hands to Him, that action represents a life lifted in dedication, devotion, and commitment to God . . . As we look at our hands, we have the opportunity to sincerely think about adjustments that might be needed in our prayer life and in our lives . . . so that we can genuinely lift our lives to God in worship with confidence and without compromise.

Take a moment to examine your heart,
                      to determine areas where you know your ways do not line up with God’s ways.

Ask God to show you where you might need to make a change in your life . . .                     
Is it an attitude? . . . A behavior? . . . A relationship?

What specifically is the Holy Spirit telling you . . . trying to show you about yourself?

What action is He leading you to take as a result?

Make a fresh decision to live a life that is consecrated to the purposes of God . . . set your attention and affection on Jesus and allow the Holy Spirit to reveal areas that Jesus longs for you to surrender . . . then release those areas to His control  . . . submit them to Christ . . . Then when you raise your hands in worship, you raise hands that represent purity, dedication, consecration, and total surrender to the will of God!

ILLUMINATION . . .

Pause for a moment and examine your hands . . . really look closely at the lines, the wrinkles, the scars . . .
What do you see when you look at them?
What does God see when He looks at your hands?

There are many "scars of life” in your hands . . .  a full life, with all its joys, challenges, and sorrows, leaves its marks on a person in a tangible or symbolic way . . .  Signs of endurance, reminders of past traumas, wounds from heartache, grief, or remorse . . . each “scar” is a testimony of an authentic, valid, genuine life . . . In biblical references, the "scars of life" can be seen as a testament to the struggles and sufferings endured in a journey of faith and obedience. 

Your hands are not just skin and bones — they are symbols of your life . . .  make sure that you lift up holy hands and give glory to God . . . Then, offer your hands as holy instruments of prayer and life, to do His will and to reach out to others with His unconditional, unchanging love!

Deeper consideration . . . When Jesus resurrected, His body was healed, but He still had scars . . . Why did Jesus have scars?  . . . The Spirit could have taken them away . . . He could have covered the wounds and made Jesus’s body exactly like it was before, or even better . . . What Jesus did on the cross would still be valid whether He had scars or not . . . think about it.

Could it be that the scars were left to testify to the work of Christ?

Could it be your scars are also there to testify to others,
about the work the Lord has accomplished in your life?

INSPIRATION—PRAYING THROUGH MUSIC . . .

"Sometimes it's not the song that makes you emotional,
it's the people and things that come to your mind when you hear it."
(Kenny Rogers)

I encourage you to take time to listen to either or both songs below . . . there is no right or wrong style of music—it is what speaks to you . . . listen to the melody and the lyrics and feel the response of your heart to what God wants you to hear . . . and I do understand that music doesn’t speak to everyone . . . and that is okay too.

♪♬♪ Current . . . Somebody Prayed

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M-0QXi7cLwI&list=RDM-0QXi7cLwI&start_radio=1

♪♬♪ Traditional . . . This is Holy Ground  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=swP9xWof2xA

INTO EACH DAY AHEAD . . .

Use your hands for God . . . let your hands be holy, pure, righteous hands . . . focused on prayer, on Him, and God’s will in your life . . . and let God use your hands and let your hands become a vessel of His love in this world.

“God has said, ‘Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.’” Hebrews 1:5

We all have scars . . . God knows each and every one of them, yet that doesn’t stop God from extending His hand to reach out to each of us . . . Jesus displayed His scars with confidence, not disgrace  . . . He knew what those scars represented—healing, salvation, peace between God and man, His glory . . . our scars are part of our lessons as we experience that healing and peace with God.

If Jesus can take a cross—a symbol of the cursed, sinners, and the damned—and turn that cross into a symbol of eternal life, then He can do the same for you and me . . . find those who are on the same journey, with you and behind you . . . pray for them, pray with them, and show them how God got you through . . . Show them your hands—your holy hands.

Lord, I pray to You . . .
 These are holy hands, You’ve given us holy hands,
You work through these hands and so these hands are holy.
There is no power in these hands without You,
so I ask your guidance in making these hands
be humbly dedicated and devoted to You. –Amen