Weary Hands

May 2

Read: Exodus 17; Focus on 8-16

Weary Hands

“Whenever Moses held up his hand, Israel prevailed, and whenever he lowered his hand, Amalek prevailed. But Moses' hands grew weary…” (v.11,12)

Do you have “weary hands”? Do you feel like you cannot lift “the staff” that God has given you any longer? Whenever I read this story it strikes me as so odd… the way that God works. When the people of God are attacked Moses sends out Joshua and his army to fight Amalek while Aaron, Hur, and Moses went to a hilltop overlooking the battle. Who would have guessed the way that God would work in accordance with Moses’ hands. Here are some interesting take aways for us this morning:

Your Physical Posture and Position Matters:

We sometimes forget the link between the spiritual and the material. We forget the way that God has woven them together. It is humbling to think that at times our physical posture might actually matter. What is even crazier is that this may even be a case of trial and error. Moses had to notice the pattern in the battle. Do you notice a pattern of when and how God meets you? Maybe it is finding a special place you go to pray… or reading you bible while sitting at a table with a notepad ready to learn… or raising your hands in worship… or folding them and closing your eyes when you pray. These are not “magical” positions, and yet - This passage concerning Moses strangely places a high value on the location and orientation of Moses body! (On the hilltop with arms raised.) Sometimes our biggest hurdle is just getting our body to the right place or into the right posture. Our physical orientation truly matters. Pay attention to when you “prevail” and when you are “defeated” - just like Moses did. When you are feeling stuck spiritually… sometimes you need to change your location or posture… literally! God actually cares about our physical bodies and they impact his work in the material world.

When Your Hands Grow Weary, You Need Help:

Moses needed to be propped up on a rock and have his hands held by two other people. This is humbling. This is a vulnerable position. This also seems a little silly… right? Can you imagine Moses’ thoughts? Maybe something like: “Come on Lord… if you are willing and able to grant the victory over Amalek…why do I need to keep my arms in the air? This seems a little hokey!” Moses had two other dudes holding his arms up ALL DAY until the sun went down. I mean HOURS. They were probably sweaty. There was no deodorant back then… just sweaty Moses pits and Aaron and Hur had their hands all in it! The point is that we need to be willing to let others lift us up… hold up our proverbial arms … when our “hands become weary” and we lack strength. This is carrying ACTUAL REAL WEIGHT for others. It wasn’t that Aaron and Hur told Moses “We will pray for you”… no they actually rolled over a rock and lifted his hands up! They went “hands on” with the problem.

Things That Seem Silly To Us May Be Important To God:

God is a God of details. Think of how he has woven this universe together and created all things! Sometimes the little things matter. I think of the ways God has called us to worship him… the instructions that he has given us on how to live and I am afraid that at times we think they are silly technicalities. To give an example: In James 5:13 and following there are instructions for elders gathering to pray for someone who is sick. Part of this instruction is to “anoint with oil” the person being prayed for. To us, that may seem like a tiny detail… almost “superstitious”… and maybe we would overlook it; but is it to God? What if God actually DOES care about these details! I can’t tell you how many times I have asked someone if the elders came to pray for them like in James 5:13 and they answered yes… but when I ask if they anointed them with oil they said no and that they didn’t think it mattered.

I imagine the warriors down in the valley with Joshua when “Amalek was prevailing”… one of them asks “are we losing right now because Moses’ arms are down!?!” Then the other “level headed” guy comes over and says, “It doest mater if Moses arms are up or down! Just fight. If God is going to give us the win… he doesn’t care where Moses’ arms are!” Well, turns out HE DOES.

You Can’t Hand Someone Else Your Staff:

No one else can carry the staff God gave Moses. Notice how Moses can’t hand it off to Aaron or Hur and they just rotate. The end result is so much more powerful… Aaron and Hur are called to help Moses carry out what he is called to! No one else can live our story for us… We don’t just get to handover what God has entrusted to us… but we CAN ask for help. We can admit when we have “weary hands”. We can let other brothers and sisters prop us up when we run out of gas! Remember, you can’t hand someone else your “staff from God” but you can have then help you carry it.

This week, if you have “weary hands” let some people come in and hold you up. Accept their help. Tell them you need it… do not be ashamed! As the people of God, we need to be ready to roll a rock over and let someone sit-down while we lift their hands for them. We need to be ready to carry REAL WEIGHT. We need to be willing to do more than “pray for them”. (Prayer is VERY important! Don’t get me wrong) What I am getting at is that Aaron and Hur didn’t pray on top of that mountain for Moses’ arms to get strong… they stepped in and carried weight. It will not always be easy… it may be like smelly-Moses-pits when we go “hands on”… but that is OK. God gives victory in the battle, and sometimes things that we don’t think really matter actually make a big deal to him. Some of these details that we think are “silly” may not be that silly after all. Here is to having others hold up our arms when we can’t! Love you guys. - JDP