Open Hands
Years ago I read a quote from Corrie Ten Boom, “Hold everything in your hands lightly, otherwise it hurts when God pries your fingers open.” That sentence is seared in my mind because I so often grasp things too tightly. Whether it’s plans, people, or possessions, it’s all too easy to hold on until my knuckles are white and each finger that God pries open brings agony.
I have a tendency to hold on even harder when I feel things begin to slip away or be taken from me. You know when Job says, “The Lord gives and the Lord takes away. Blessed be the name of the Lord.”? It takes a complete surrendering of control to say that, and control is something I hate to surrender.
I am my own worst enemy. By holding on too tightly and grasping for things no longer mine, I cause myself pain. You’d think after awhile I would realize that trusting God and surrendering to him is what brings me peace, but alas, each time I look down and I see my hands tightly closed.
Today I am reminding myself to hold things lightly and have open hands.
