Heavy Arms by Tammy Blackburn

Have you ever engaged in a task that required you to keep your arms above your head for a long period of time? Your arms begin to ache. They feel much too heavy to continue holding up. I have worked with puppets for most of my life and there have been times behind the puppet stage when I felt as if my arm were going to explode form being held up so long. In Exodus chapter 17, we are told about a battle the Israelites had to fight against the Amalekites. Moses spoke to Joshua and told him to choose the best men to go out and fight. Moses promised that for the whole day he would stand at the top of the hill with his arms raised to God interceding on their behalf for victory. Moses did as promised. He grew weary a few times and the Bible tells us that each time he lowered his arms the Israelites began to lose the battle. When Moses raised his arms to back toward God the Israelites were winning again. Aaron and Hur saw what was happening. They knew Moses was getting tired. Can you just imagine? Aaron and Hur rushed to the top of the hill and found a rock for Moses to sit on. They positioned themselves on either side of Moses and held his arms up and steady until sunset. Joshua and his men defeated the Amalekites. Afterward Moses built an altar and gave praise to God for the victory. In Exodus 17:15, Moses said, “The Lord is our Banner; for hands were lifted to the throne of the Lord.”

My daughter has been suffering from a lot of illness this past winter. She has been to the doctor on several occasions. Very recently she had to go again. Preliminary tests came back positive for Lymphoma or cancer of the lymph nodes. I felt as if my heart had fallen into the pit of my stomach. “No, no, no, not my baby girl,” was all that kept going through my mind. It was a plea from the bottom of my being. I was given the news by phone and was forced to comfort my tearful child from afar. After ending the phone call, I literally fell to my knees in prayer. My emotions were in such turmoil that I didn’t feel like I could get out a coherent sentence. I was begging God for healing, for strength, for wisdom, for comfort, and for peace. Our family has been through a number of hard experiences in the last few years and at that moment I was feeling very tired. As I was crying out to God I told Him how tired I was. I remember saying that I knew I didn’t have the strength to face this situation. I know God is the source of our strength and He has proven that to me many times, but in that moment I couldn’t even muster the little bit I needed to continue praying. God in His mercy reminded me of the story about Moses that I just shared. He gently helped me to realize that if I was too weak to lift arms to Him there were friends who could help. I shot out a few quick emails and phone calls and within minutes there was a band of friends praying and lifting their arms to God on our behalf. I felt their strength even from a distance. To make a long story short, further tests came back completely negative for any trace of cancer. Praise the Lord! He is my Banner!

How thankful I am for Godly friends who can hold my arms up in times of weakness, friends who will approach the throne of God on my behalf. Perhaps you are struggling with a situation that you don’t have the strength to face. Lift your arms to the throne of God, but don’t do it alone. Call on friends who can hold you up and intercede on your behalf. We are never alone and we don’t have to struggle with heavy arms.