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"STRENGTHEN THE WEAK"
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Scripture: Isaiah 35:3 (NRS) "Strengthen the weak hands and make firm the feeble knees."
We are instructed to bring cheer to the discouraged and to encourage
the fearful of heart to be strong and not to fear. We are to
strengthen those who are weak and feeble. We are to tell them that God
is coming with vengeance to destroy their enemy and that He will save
them. These words of encouragement and our acts of kindness are meant
to bring hope and strength to the weakest warrior and give courage to
the most fearful heart.
When the enemy came to fight against the Israelites, Moses went to the
top of the hill with the same staff in his hands that he had previously
used to do mighty miracles. Moses had used the staff to bring several
plagues on the Egyptians, to part the Red Sea, and to cause the waters
of the sea to swallow up the armies of Pharaoh. He had also used the
staff to strike the rock, which brought forth water for the thirsty
people. The staff was still working, for the Israelites were
victorious in the battle as long as Moses was able to hold the rod in
the air. However, when Moses lowered his hands to rest, the enemy
prevailed. When Moses finally became too tired to stand and too weary
to hold up the rod any longer, Aaron and Hur came to his rescue. They
placed a stone underneath Moses so that he could sit down and then they
stood on each side of him and lifted his arms as he continued to hold
the rod. Because of this joint venture, the Israelites were able to
win the battle.
Aaron and Hur may have thought that Moses could do it all by himself
because they had witnessed so many miracles by his hands. Likewise,
Moses may have felt that he had everything under control. Sometimes we
are like this. We forget to pray and uphold those whom we think are
more spiritual than ourselves because we think that they have it all
together. Other times, we think that we are strong enough to stand
alone, but the truth is that we all need each other. Even Jesus had
His close friends and associates. He had the seventy that He sent out
to witness for Him and He had His twelve disciples that stayed near Him
as He ministered to the multitudes. Among those twelve, He had Peter,
James, and John, the three who were closer to Jesus and who shared
special experiences with Him. Then Jesus had John, the one whom He
loved the most. These men ministered to Jesus in special ways while He
taught them and made them strong in the faith.
We all need each other. We should never feel that we are beyond
helping others or being helped by others, for God never designed man to
be alone. He gave us each other so that we could encourage and give
strength to one another because life's battles require allies. So let
us be humble enough to look to others when we need help and let also
look for those that we can help. Let us be ready to strengthen the
weak hands and make firm the feeble knees. +++
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