With one hand on the shopping cart handle and the other linked to the smallest of three toddlers, a young mother scanned the busy parking lot from the curb.
“Hold your brother’s hand when you cross the street,” she said.
The four year-old wrinkled his nose at the younger boy to his left. Thrusting his chin upward, the elder child folded his arms and sprinted away from the curb. The three year old waddled in the opposite direction. Momma somehow caught a chunky arm from each boy and corralled them to the crosswalk. She set up an effective family safety plan, but her children didn’t understand their need to follow her directions.
I chuckled at the “eldest” child’s expression. In a few years, he might have words to express his resistance.
“I don’t care if you are my Momma. No matter what you say, I am not holding that kid’s hand.”
God commands His children to hold hands. Unity with one another connects us to Him in a strong bond that protects us from evil. Pride tempts us to shrug off our siblings, as if our few years of seniority offer any significant maturity compared to God. The Lord’s grip is on the other hand of that wee sister, and she is our indirect connection to Him.
We often fail to understand why we need fellowship and remain oblivious to unseen perils. The Lord sees the traffic ahead and around us from a higher viewpoint. Sprinting off alone, we wouldn’t even see tragedy coming before it flattens us.
Whether young or old in Christ, cling in faith to His plan. We don’t have to understand why He commands us to hold hands, but it’s in our best interests to obey the source of infinite wisdom Who loves us more than we’ll ever know.
