A Word from Psalm 28

What are some of the occasions that have made you raise your hands? Maybe you were in a classroom or seminar, and your raised your hand because you had a question. Or maybe you were watching a football or baseball game, and you raised your hands when your team scored. Sometimes, we raise our hands to threaten or scare off an adversary. And in some churches, they raise their hands in worship. But in today’s word from Psalm 28, we read about a different “hand raising,” which I think gives us hope.

The ancient poet who wrote this psalm began his reflection like this:

To you, Lord, I call;

     you are my Rock,

     do not turn a deaf ear to me.

Hear my cry for mercy

     as I call to you for help,

as I lift up my hands

     toward your Most Holy Place. (vs. 1-2; emphasis added)

Now, to me, the psalmist is raising hands in desperation. Like a child reaching out for a mother or father, the poet longs for and reaches for the comfort that can only be found in the loving presence of the one who made him and protects him. And as the psalm goes on to say, God is faithful to provide that comforting embrace:

Praise be to the Lord,

     for he has heard my cry for mercy.

The Lord is my strength and my shield;

     my heart trusts in him, and he helps me. (vs. 6-7)

Naturally, I don’t now what might make you raise your hands today. But if you are reaching for arms of love, I hope you know that the Father’s arms are open for you. And if you don’t feel a desperate need for those arms today, maybe you can be the arms of God for someone who does. May all of us find that when we “lift up our hands,” God will be there for us. Amen.