Take Heart ~ Hillsong
Therefore
strengthen your tired hands and weakened knees, ~ Hebrews 12:12 HCSB
Before it ran out of seasons, we watched Heartland, which is about a family who
owns and runs a horse ranch in Canada. Often, when someone wasn’t giving it
“their all,” the ranchers would say, “Cowboy up,” which calls for an attitude shift
from “can’t” to “can do.” Sometimes I have to say that to myself, especially
when my physical therapist wants me to give more than I think I’ve got.
Like with push-ups; after a few weeks, I was doing 20 in
a row. But my physical therapist soon realized why I could do so many: I was
doing the modified-modified version. My arms were too far out from my body, and
I wasn’t bringing my body low enough to the ground, so I wasn’t giving my arms
the same weight-resistance, as when they are done properly. Part of the reason
I’m at physical therapy is to strengthen my neck and upper body, so that I
don’t get migraines and vertigo as often, as easily, or at all. But real
push-ups are hard! I got through two and flopped on the ground. My physical
therapist is a very nice man. He gave me a moment, then said, “go, again.”
There have been many moments in my life where I didn’t
want to “go, again” or “Cowboy up.” The times that I did, even if I couldn’t
make it as far or as good as I thought I should, were MUCH better than the
times that I didn’t even try. Albert Einstein said, “You never fail until you
stop trying.” That’s true in everything: communication, relationships, exercise,
work, and life goals, everything.
Today’s verse says to strengthen our weakened hands and
knees. Weak hands were a sign of someone who’d lost courage, who didn’t have
faith enough to try. Whatever you’re facing today, don’t lose heart. Instead,
be like Nehemiah, who—though others said his hands would weaken and he wouldn’t
complete the work—prayed, Now
therefore, O God, strengthen
my hands, (Nehemiah 6:9 NKJV).
That’s my prayer. And though I may never get to 20
push-ups in a row, I bet next time, I’ll get more than two. What will you ask God
to strengthen, so that you’ll have the courage to do?
©Heather Potts 2019
