Holding Up Their Arms

As a mom, when my kids were younger they would often stretch their arms up to me from below asking in their own way for me to comfort them, love them, acknowledge them, and so on. There were often no words that went along with this, it was just a gesture to me of what they needed. I don’t believe they knew themselves knew what they were needing, but they had an innate understanding that if only they raised their arms to me whatever it was would be ok. This analogy can easily be used towards us as Christians reaching out to our heavenly Father. Not knowing what we need, but simply reaching out to Him for our own indescribable needs to be met. What if people in the world today asked us to help them, to carry them, to ‘lift their arms’? Would you answer that call?

In the book of Exodus, Moses stands upon a hill with the staff of God in his hand giving victory to the Israelites who were fighting below where he stood. As his arms began to tire he would lower them, which would have shifted the victory from the Israelites to their enemies, but two helpers came to steady him until their was victory, “But Moses’ hands grew weary, so they took a stone and put it under him, and he sat on it, while Aaron and Hur held up his hands, one on one side, and the other on the other side. So his hands were steady until the going down of the sun” (Exodus 17:12, ESV). Joshua and Hur were faithful in that moment to help and encourage the work Moses needed to do for the glory of God. There were no promises that they would be rewarded, and/or acknowledged for this victory. The same can be said about Titus, Tychicus, Onesimus, as well as others doing the work of a faithful helper in the New Testament. All of these men stood in the gap when they were needed and where there was need.

God needed to get us to a point of brokenness and weakness that we could do nothing, but pray and wait. So that’s what we do.

God has asked myself and my family to be the arm holders to those in need, to stand in the gap for the lost, and for the ministries, and missionaries needing helpers and encouragement. In a time when many churches are seeking to become more relevant, and ministries have forgotten the importance of being steadfast in prayer, the simple concept of coming alongside others has been overlooked. Somewhere along the way, churches have placed a greater emphasis on creating something new, planting a church, or beginning a new and exciting ministry, rather than sending out workers to help build up what is already going on in the world. The answer to the call to simply be available to help, sounds appealing and easy, but it takes brokenness, humility, faith, and obedience to willingly be that vessel.