Pray With Open Hands

When you want to pray, the first question is:  How do I open my closed hands?
Henri Nouwen

Pray this way. That’s what Jesus said as He began to teach the disciples how to pray. We read His words, but know nothing of His posture, or what His hands were doing. But I do know that if we hold on too tightly as we pray to things like worry or our own ideas of how God should answer our prayers, we will not find the peace and joy that prayer should give us.

Pray With Faith

That’s our problem.  We’re hanging on too tightly.
Afraid to let go of the thing, or person, or expectation that we fear God is taking from our grasp,  from our lives.  The loss, the soul shattering fear of loss makes our fingers curl tightly and we hang on and hold on for dear life.  Only it doesn’t bring life.  Life is union with God, oneness with Him.  And the secret of that oneness is open hands.  Remember that God thinks like a Father.  Do we know Him so little that we fear His intentions  and doubt His love for us?  We have to learn to practice relinquishment  and live with open hands. We need to put our faith in Him and put our burdens into His hands.

Pray With Expectation

Open hands allow God to place something in them, to fill them with His chosen blessing, His doma ~ His gift. 
Practicing acceptance is to live with open hands.  It says, “Lord I know You are good and I know what you give is good.”
Do we believe that?  Our stubborn proud hearts convince us that we know better than God, who has already delivered Jesus up for us all, and has promised to freely give us all things.   How much more must He do and give before we trust Him?  Trust opens our hearts to joy because it gives unbelief a big kick in the pants.  It says, “here’s your hat & there’s the door”.  

Relinquishment is to let go, to yield, or to surrender something.
Acceptance is the action of consenting to receive or undertake something offered.

I heard once in a sermon that the Jews pray with lifted hands in expectation of receiving from God.
As Christians we say we lift our burdens to Him.
Either way we’re going to have to open our hands.

Have you been holding tightly to something other than God?  What’s at the root of your doubt?  God’s willing to hear it and to convince you of His love.  Tell Him your fears, but depend on His love.