Hands

The inspiration for this post came during this past summer at Subway, when my brother Elliot and I were comparing our hand sizes. I have some pretty small hands for an adult human being, and his hands are large.

Left: Elliot's index finger    Rightt: my index finger

Left: my pinky               Right: his pinky 

Left: my index finger           Right: his pinky

Left: his thumb                Right: my thumb

My hand on his hand

Left: my hand span       Right: his hand span

In Church today we were talking about service, and how we are the hands of God. My mind wandered to this incident, and the comparison of Elliot's and my hands. I was laughing about the huge difference in our sizes, and then I shifted my thoughts to us as spiritual hands.

Our spiritual hands our similar in the sense that we each have:

• A thumb(s up) to share support and encouragement with each other. 
• An index finger to point people in the right direction
• A middle finger for snapping, to get the attention of those around us
• A ring finger with a vein that runs directly to our heart, a.k.a. passion and emotion
• A pinky for promises and covenants, to keep our word and be someone others can rely on

Elliot and I compared our hands, examining each little part, laughing at the major differences in our hands, even though both consisted of a thumb, index finger, middle finger, ring finger, pinky, knuckles, palm, etc... Depending on the occasion, his hands might be more suited for the job. If we needed to grab something that slid in-between seats, my hands would be much more suited to reach in and grab the item. If we were needing to carry something large, his hands would be much more able to do so than mine.

What if I based my worth on how well my hands could accomplish what his hands can accomplish? If I was determined to open every jar, have the same sized handfuls, or be the ultimate winner at thumb wars. I would be a very sad person. It sounds silly that I would obsess over my hands being able to do the same as his hands, when mine are capable of just as many things, just different things. 

Why do we do this with us as spiritual hands? Why do we get so worked up over being able to do the same things as others around us, when our spiritual hands are different sizes? We are all important. All of us are God's hands, because we are all needed to do very individual and unique jobs, that others simply cannot do. 

I am God's hands. You are God's hands. WE are God's hands. Let's stop comparing and worrying. Nothing is wrong with your hands, unless they are idle. Use them. Let's make a difference.