Stretch Out Your Hand

I love that everyday I can read God's word and something new jumps out at me. That no matter how many times I may have read the same verse I see something different or relate to the passage with a new perspective. I have been reading Utmost for His Highest lately and Oswald Chambers was speaking about spiritual initiative. That we need to take that first step towards growing with God and he will reward us and restore us. The parable he used was from Matthew 12. It spoke directly to me and I think you'll see why.

Matthew 12:9-13 (New International Version)

9Going on from that place, he went into their synagogue, 10and a man with a shriveled hand was there....

13Then he said to the man, "Stretch out your hand." So he stretched it out and it was completely restored, just as sound as the other.

Chambers makes the point that just as the man with the withered hand-all we need to do is stretch out towards Jesus and he will "completely" restore us. The way it hits home in my own life of course is wonderful. My Mom had to have surgery to "stretch out her hand" but the promise of complete restoration is still available to us. In the same way I have had to learn to "stretch out my hand" in my own spiritual journey so that I could be available to Jesus as he healed me and my own life with complete restoration.

I am humbled at reading this passage. Simply because I feel like it was written specifically for me and my family but also because it only requires one simple step towards Christ to begin healing. He doesn't ask the man to stretch out his hand, jump up and down, pray 15 times a day, or anything else. No he just asked him to, quite frankly, obey. "Stretch out your hand."

It sounds so simple but to a man with a withered hand that could never do that before it was probably quite scary and tasking. Yet Jesus was there to offer his healing power in order for him to be able to stretch out his hand. The man didn't have to have any amazing feats of strength, no he simply had to TRUST.

I must trust and obey so that I may experience complete restoration.