Quote from Forum Archives on May 26, 2005, 1:05 pm

Posted by: bigguyhereagain <bigguyhereagain@...>

"Grandpa's Hands"

 

 

  Grandpa, some ninety plus years, sat feebly on the patio bench.  He    
  didn't move, just sat with his head down staring at his hands.  When I
  sat down beside him he didn't acknowledge my presence and the longer I
  sat I wondered if he was OK.

 

  Finally, not really wanting to disturb him but wanting to check on him
  at the same time, I asked him if he was OK.  He raised his head and
  looked at me and smiled.  Yes, I'm fine, thank you for asking, he said
  in a clear strong voice.

 

  I didn't mean to disturb you, grandpa, but you were just sitting here  
  staring at your hands and I wanted to make sure you were OK I explained
  to him.

 

  Have you ever looked at your hands he asked.  I mean really looked at  
  your hands?
 
  I slowly opened my hands and stared down at them. I turned them over,
  palms up and then palms down.  No, I guess I had never really looked at
  my hands as I tried to figure out the point he was making.

 

  Grandpa smiled and related this story:                                 
 
  Stop and think for a moment about the hands you have, how they have    
  served you well throughout your years.  These hands, though wrinkled,
  shriveled and weak have been the tools I have used all my life to reach
  out and grab and embrace life.

 

  They braced and caught my fall when as a toddler I crashed upon the    
  floor.  They put food in my mouth and clothes on my back.  As a child my
  mother taught me to fold them in prayer.  They tied my shoes and pulled
  on my boots.

 

  They dried the tears of my children and caressed the love of my life.  
                                                       
  They held my rifle and wiped my tears when I went off to war.  They    
  have been dirty, scraped and raw, swollen and bent.
 
  They were uneasy and clumsy when I tried to hold my newborn son.       
 
  Decorated with my wedding band they showed the world that I was married
  And loved someone special.  They wrote the letters home and trembled and
  shook when I buried my parents and spouse and walked my daughter down
  the aisle.

 

  Yet, they were strong and sure when I dug my buddy out of a foxhole and
  lifted a plow off of my best friends foot.  They have held children,
  consoled neighbors, and shook in fists of anger when I didn't
  understand.  They have covered my face, combed my hair, and washed and
  cleansed the rest of my body.  They have been sticky and wet, bent and
  broken, dried and raw.  And to this day when not much of anything else
  of me works real well these hands hold me up, lay me down, and again
  continue to fold in prayer.  These hands are the mark of where I've been
  and the ruggedness of my life.

 

  But more importantly it will be these hands that God will reach out and
  take when he leads me home.  And with my hands He will lift me to His
  side and there I will use these hands to touch the face of Christ.

 

  I will never look at my hands the same again.  But I remember God      
  reached out and took my grandpa's hands and led him home.  When my hands
  are hurt or sore or when I stroke the face of my children and wife I
  think grandpa.  I know he has been stroked and caressed and held by the
  hands of God.  I, too, want to touch the face of God and feel his hands
  upon my face.

 

 

A Bigger Frying Pan

 

Two men went fishing. One man was an experienced fisherman, the other wasn't. Every time the experienced fisherman caught a big fish, he put it in his ice chest to keep it fresh. Whenever the inexperienced fisherman caught a big fish, he threw it back. The experienced fisherman watched this go on all day and finally got tired of seeing this man waste good fish. "Why do you keep throwing back all the big fish you catch?" he asked.

 

The inexperienced fisherman replied, "I only have a small frying pan."

 

Sometimes, like that fisherman, we throw back the big plans, big dreams, big jobs, and big opportunities that God gives us. Our faith is too small. We laugh at that fisherman who didn't figure out that all he needed was a bigger frying pan; yet how ready are we to increase the size of our faith?

 

Whether it's a problem or a possibility, God will never give you anything bigger than you can handle. That means we can confidently walk into anything God brings our way.

 

 

GOD never gives us more than we can handle
and He always has a Reason!

 

 

Have a Blessed Day
Dave and Barbara

 

 

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