What's That You're Holding in Your Hand?

There’s something quite special and magical about the first child in a family. They have everyone to themselves and you have all the time to devote to noticing all the precious things about them. If you are a family of three or more, check out the baby books. Seriously, first baby has every little detail listed, written about and adored. Second baby has most everything written in the book. Even though they are adored as much as the first baby, there’s just less time to devote to the baby books. By the time baby number 3 arrives, well, let’s just say – good intentions but very little time to write all the details – although again each one in succession is loved and valued for their individual wonderfulness.


Our oldest daughter was a typical first born. She was independent, strong willed and intelligent to a fault! She could spell and count and do all kinds of cute things. She could ride her tricycle and even tried to ride it to my aunt’s house down the highway about 3 miles! (yes that’s when gray hair first appeared on my head)

As with oldest children, we bought things a little early. She got frustrated when at less than 2 years old we bought her a tricycle. Of course she insisted she could do it herself! We got her a swing set when she was just two with a ladder that was just a little high for a tyke her size. But she did love her swing set. She would sit on the bottom of the slide or push on the swing on her tummy.

One day she was out sitting on the swing set and suddenly she came running in the house, crying her eyes out! She told me she had caught a butterfly. Only it was a bumble bee! Of course as little hands do, she had squeezed it tightly and it stung her. It had lightly landed on her hand while she was swinging but she had not wanted it to fly away. So she grabbed it.

There are things that I want to hold onto. I would bet there are things you are trying to hold onto as well. There are many things that can cause us problems if we hold on too tightly: hurts, anger, worry, fear, people, loved ones, money, possessions, friendships, habits, safety, etc. No matter what it is we try to hold onto, if we hold too tightly we’re going to get stung. We must hold loosely in our hands everything that comes to us for it is all in God’s Sovereign plan that they pass through our lives.

Oh beloved, run to the Lord this morning and let Him see what’s in your hands. He may let you keep it close to your heart. He may ask you to turn it loose and let it go. Whichever He does you can be sure He can be trusted for He always has your best in mind. He will never ask you to relinquish anything unless He has something better in mind. Relax and rest in His decisions for He loves you whole-heartedly and He’s for you absolutely and that’s all that really matters.

Ephesians 4:31-32 Let all bitterness and indignation and wrath (passion, rage, bad temper) and resentment (anger, animosity) and quarreling (brawling, clamor, contention) and slander (evil-speaking, abusive or blasphemous language) be banished from you, with all malice (spite, ill will, or baseness of any kind). And become useful and helpful and kind to one another, tenderhearted (compassionate, understanding, loving-hearted), forgiving one another [readily and freely], as God in Christ forgave you. Amplified

Philippians 3:8 Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For His sake I have discarded everything else, counting it all as garbage, so that I could gain Christ.

1 Thessalonians 5:21 but test everything that is said. Hold on to what is good.

Romans 12:9 Don’t just pretend to love others. Really love them. Hate what is wrong. Hold tightly to what is good.

2 Timothy 1:13 Hold on to the pattern of wholesome teaching you learned from me—a pattern shaped by the faith and love that you have in Christ Jesus.