Download You Are The Reason Why I Lift My Hands

I can remember a specific chapel service in the late 1970s, when I was a college teacher, in which I was sitting beside a fellow faculty member who during a prayer simply laid his hands, palms up, on his lap. I remember the almost disgust that I felt seeing him do that.

We were singing one of those, and suddenly I found my hands lifted in the air, and it was as though I was watching myself rather than doing it. I had never, in 36 years of my life, lifted my hands in song until that moment.

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Depending on the kind of service and who was present and the nature of the music, I would guess that over time at Bethlehem you might have ten to thirty percent of the people lifting their hands in worship.

Hymns can be sung with just as much inauthenticity as worship songs. Organs can be played with just as much hypocrisy as guitars. Hands can be kept down for motives just as defective as motives for lifting them up.

The lessons and thoughts shared here are priceless, as a woman I have to ask, who is speaking up for us not to raise our hands to the men on our lives. I am sure there are men who are abused and feel shamed to say so, for me the bottom line is simple, we need to re-iterate RESPECT each other, does not matter whether you are a male or female, live this value for all to see, and this could change many lives and the future of our country.

Furthermore, this command for men relates to a specific activity: prayer (more on this below). The Apostle also requires that these men be holy and not angry or quarreling (which appears as a common feature of the false teachers Paul addresses in 1 Timothy). This text is simply not a call for the whole church to raise their hands while they worship.

The New Testament rarely addresses the issue of raising hands. One can find three other instances, none of which appear in the context of church worship (Luke 24:50; Rev. 10:5-6; Hebrews 12:12). Therefore, no examples or commands for all Christians to lift their hands in worship can be found in the NT.

Based on the OT evidence, the best case or justification for raising hands in worship can be found in Psalm 134:2 and 141:2 (from # 2 in the summary above). These two examples give rise to several questions the serious student of the Bible needs to address:

We also need to recognize our context: In America many Christians (genuine born-again believers) have only experienced worship in which everyone raises their hands. Many have never considered this expression in light of the Scripture. In our desire to make disciples, we should humbly and patiently sit down with other believers and talk about all our worship practices with our Bibles open.

We all worship in different ways. Some of us praise God in a quiet way, keeping our joy and thanksgiving inside our hearts and minds, silently offering them to God. Others of us cannot sit or stand still as we clap our hands, raise our arms, singing our worship in a spirit of outward expression. Both ways, and anything in between, if done in sincerity and honesty toward God, are acceptable and honorable to our God, who deserves all our praise.

As we think specifically about our posture when we worship and approach God, there seems to be something special about lifting our hands and raising our arms toward heaven and God. These worshipful gestures may symbolize our desire to reach out and touch God, to invite his presence into our lives, and to unite ourselves with a person outside of ourselves.

Some time ago, I ran across an article from the Associated Press written by Rob Maaddi. The story was about a 29-year-old wide receiver for the Philadelphia Eagles named Jason Avant who would raise his hands to heaven after each catch of the football. As the story unfolded, we saw that Jason was celebrating much more than catching a pass or scoring a touchdown.

Just as the people of the Old and New Testaments were people with an eye to the future, we too can look to the New Year with expectations from a God who keeps his promises. We look, our hands lifted toward the God of the future, the God of hope, made possible by Jesus who became one of us.

As our hands are filled with the hope, blessings, and possibilities of the New Year, may they be emptied into the lives of those who seem to have no hope. May our arms and hands become the arms and hands of Christ as we reach out to others.

When we come to God in worship lifting our hands is a physical demonstration of the surrender in our heart and mind to His Lordship. Lifting our hands is also a form of supplication. Like a man drowning in water, we lift up our hands to be saved. Unlike in war, when surrender means captivity and humiliation; surrender to God means freedom to be raised up and live life to the full.

Keeping hands clean is one of the most important steps we can take to avoid getting sick and spreading germs to others. Many diseases and conditions are spread by not washing hands with soap and clean, running water. CDC recommends cleaning hands in a specific way to avoid getting sick and spreading germs to others. The guidance for effective handwashing and use of hand sanitizer was developed based on data from a number of studies.

Why? Because hands could become recontaminated if placed in a basin of standing water that has been contaminated through previous use, clean running water should be used 1. However, washing with non-potable water when necessary may still improve health 3. The temperature of the water does not appear to affect microbe removal; however, warmer water may cause more skin irritation and is more environmentally costly 4-6.

Using soap to wash hands is more effective than using water alone because the surfactants in soap lift soil and microbes from skin, and people tend to scrub hands more thoroughly when using soap, which further removes germs 2,3,7,8.

Why? Lathering and scrubbing hands creates friction, which helps lift dirt, grease, and microbes from skin. Microbes are present on all surfaces of the hand, often in particularly high concentration under the nails, so the entire hand should be scrubbed 11-15.

Why? Determining the optimal length of time for handwashing is difficult because few studies about the health impacts of altering handwashing times have been done. Of those that exist, nearly all have measured reductions in overall numbers of microbes, only a small proportion of which can cause illness, and have not measured impacts on health. Solely reducing numbers of microbes on hands is not necessarily linked to better health 16. The optimal length of time for handwashing is also likely to depend on many factors, including the type and amount of soil on the hands and the setting of the person washing hands. For example, surgeons are likely to come into contact with disease-causing germs and risk spreading serious infections to vulnerable patients, so they may need to wash hands longer than someone preparing their own lunch at home. Nonetheless, evidence suggests that washing hands for about 15-30 seconds removes more germs from hands than washing for shorter periods 15, 17, 18.

Why? Germs can be transferred more easily to and from wet hands; therefore, hands should be dried after washing 15, 19. However, the best way to dry hands remains unclear because few studies about hand drying exist, and the results of these studies conflict. Additionally, most of these studies compare overall concentrations of microbes, not just disease-causing germs, on hands following different hand-drying methods. It has not been shown that removing microbes from hands is linked to better health 16. Nonetheless, studies suggest that using a clean towel or air drying hands are best 18, 20, 21.

When I was younger, I thought the people waving their hands all over the place were kind of weird. It just seemed awkward and unnecessary. As I got a little older, I thought I'd figured out the reasoning behind the action -- to demonstrate joy and praise to God through worship. It was a way to be connected to Him by simply reaching out.

I wasn't wrong about that last part. Worship is certainly a way to feel God's presence, and it can be powerful for people in different ways. Some people (like me) prefer worshipping through our instruments instead of singing. Others are content to simply stand and enjoy the knowledge that God is right there in the room with us as the church unites as one voice and one body. And some like to reach their hands out to the ceiling, like they're trying to blend the physical and spiritual sensations.

Moses knows they cannot defend themselves against the Amalekites without God. He knows the power of the Lord is the only way to save the Israelites, so he holds up his hands as if to proclaim his own unworthiness, as if to say, "We can't do this on our own. We need You."

When Moses lowered his hands, the enemy won. That physical sign of keeping his hands in the air no matter how hard it was for him revealed his devotion to God and that he knew he needed God's help. So in a way, it is still a sign of praise -- but more in terms of realizing our own unworthiness.

When people raise their hands during worship at church, whether they know it or not, they are admitting that they are weak and without any power aside from the power they receive through the Holy Spirit. They're praising God by physically and publicly demonstrating to Him that they need Him.

When I think about this, I remember how when I was a little kid I used to think people raising their hands looked awkward or even kind of weird. But the people worshipping don't care how they look. They're surrendering to God--and becoming empowered through it.

I found this to be true in my own life. I used to go to a church whose worship style was rather conservative. But one thing that they did encourage was this: During prayer time, they would encourage anyone that was able to humble themselves on their knees during prayer time. At the time I had just started to go to this church. This, too me, was the clincher. I really enjoyed the prayer time. Now I am going to a church where I feel free to raise me hands and bow before him during the worship time- and I really enjoy it.

During my own private time with the Lord,I find that this also is a part of my time with the Lord. I so want to express my love for the Lord during this time. Thanks for sharing this! e24fc04721