Yes, I Can Be a Little Grabby — on Purpose
My Children’s Hospital sagas continue. A younger child has no idea what faces them here so they hold tightly to their mom or dad. They only know they hurt and their parents love them too much to let it last. Yesterday, most of the kids were quite strong as they allowed mom or dad to wait while I took them back for x-rays. One little girl grabbed hold of me, hugged me, called me Princess and asked me to be her best friend. My heart melted as she held tightly to my hand. The diagnosis? This time, it was a sprained finger. Last time? A broken arm. No wonder she wasn’t grasping so tightly to her mom. She knew we were here to be loving, kind and caring and to make her better.
Soon, another mom came in with a grasping-tightly, in much pain, three-year-old. If that wasn’t enough, the mom had a feisty one-year-old, hard-pressed to stay in his stroller. Mom needed “a hand” and I gave her one. I intervened by making rumbling sounds with his truck and other shenanigans while the little girl was being x-rayed but it lasted only so long before he was looking for his mom. When she appeared, he stretched out his little hands for her. Those HANDS — he knew so well.
As I listened to news reports about the devastation in Oklahoma and Missouri over the last couple of days, I was reminded of David’s words: “Though I walk in the midst of trouble, You will revive me; You will stretch out Your HAND against the wrath of my enemies, and Your RIGHT HAND will save me. The Lord will perfect that which concerns me; Your mercy, O Lord, endures forever; do not forsake the works of Your HANDS.” Psalm 138:7-8. That scripture is about the Lord’s goodness to the faithful. I see how His hands are reaching out to His children — you and me. God is our relief-provider.
In the Book of Psalm, we can clearly see David’s heartfelt relationship with God. He was in trouble so many times. Still, he knew God and His mighty hands that would hold tightly to him and bring him out of the mess he seemed to get himself into often. David knew God would stretch out His HANDS in his time of trouble and deliver him. I hear God saying to us over and over “Fear not!” in the midst of our troubles. We just need to be GRABBY and take hold of His hand when He stretches it out to us. Grab hold of it tightly and don’t let go. No matter what we are going through, God will fulfill the purposes that He has planned for our lives. We can still feel the wind but when we hold tight to God’s unchanging hands, He makes it all better.
“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