hands held high...

“So Joshua fought the Amalekites as Moses had ordered, and Moses, Aaron, and Hur went to the top of the hill. As long as Moses help up his hands, the Israelites were winning, but whenever he lowered his hands, the Amalekites were winning. When Moses’ hands grew tired, they took a stone and put it under him and he sat upon it. Aaron and Hur held his hands up – one on one side, one on the other – so that his hands remained steady till sunset. So Joshua overcame the Amalekite army with the sword.” – Exodus 17:10-13

This portion of God’s Word has been on my heart a lot lately. I have been trying to fully wrap my mind around these words and see how it applies to you and me. Here is what I came up with:

We use all type of metaphor’s to describe our daily relationship with God. Some call it a journey. Some call it their spiritual walk. Others call it a spiritual rollercoaster.

My relationship with God can probably be more accurately described as a constant battle. A battle to choose to do the right things. A battle to choose selflessness over selfishness. A battle to pursue holiness in a world that does not value holiness. A battle to not define God by the people that say they follow him. A battle to endure life and the distractions of this world while maintaining your focus on God.

Like Exodus 17, I see my life in a constant battle. A battle between two worlds – the selfless, holy, God-following world vs the selfish, sinful, world-following world. Like any true battle, winning requires effort.

Moses had to keep his hands raised to win his battle. That may not sound like much but holding your hands in the air gets pretty difficult after a while. If you do not believe me, go ahead and hold your hands as high as you can for as long as you can. It starts to burn after a while. I can see why how over the course of a battle, Moses would get tired, give into gravity, and let his hands fall. When his hands were raised, they would be winning the battle. When he would get tired and his hands would fall, they would be losing the battle. Only after his friends were there to help consistently hold his hands high, could Moses keep his hands up.

I see the same cycle happening in my life. When I have energy, focus, and things going my way, I have my hands stretched towards heavenly in victory. However, when I am tired, weary, and burdened I go through hands-down stretches of defeat. Yet, I still go through the same cycle…good, bad, good, bad, hands up in victory, hands down in defeat, etc.

There has to be a way to be more consistent. Sometimes I am not strong enough. Sometimes I cannot do it on my own. Sometimes I do not have the strength to keep going. How do we keep our hands raised in victory when we grow weary and tired? According to Exodus 17, other believers are there to help us. People in your life that support you and want to see you win those spiritual battles should come beside you, hold you hands high, and help take you to victory.

Some of you reading this right now know exactly what I am saying. You have spent years going through the cycle of hands raised of victory and hands lowered in defeat. It is almost as if you have spiritual multiple personalities. You are craving spiritual consistency and consistent victories.

Others of you maybe right at the point of feeling tired. You have tried to endure, but your shoulders are burning. Maybe you are frustrated with the church and want to give up. Maybe you are frustrated in relationships and want to give up. Maybe you are tired of simply being tired.

Let me encourage you to find people in your life that will help hold your victorious hands high. Find those in your life that you trust and share your life. Tell them the specific areas of your life you need help. Tell them you are not strong enough to get through the battle alone. WARNING – this will require you to take off your Sunday suit/dress, be honest, and get real.

Others of you should be helping others more by being hand-lifters in other’s lives. You know people who are struggling to retain consistency in their spiritual walk. You see them go through the vicious cycle of inconsistency. WIll you care enough about those with their hands down in defeat to do something about it?

Are you tired? Do you need somebody to come alongside you and help hold your hands high? I know I sure do.

Thanks for reading.