With Open Hands

Have you ever tried to grab water?  No, not a bottle of water or a glass of water, but have you ever tried to grab water?  If you grab water, the tighter you squeeze it, the less you end up with.   If you want to hold water, you have to hold it WITH OPEN HANDS.

I often find myself trying to grab God's blessings.  When God blesses me with peace, joy or any other blessing, I grab it with all my might, pull it close to my chest and try to make sure that it does not leave me.  He hands it over to me and I try to devour it and control it.  As I pull it closer and closer and clench it tighter and tighter, the blessing disappears out the creases of my hands.  Basically, I smother God's blessings. 

As I was contemplating this principle, I thought of one exception.  I want to love, adore and hold my kids as close as I can.  They are a blessing from God, but they need someone to hold them tight.  Really, though, if I keep holding them so tight as they grow older and do not begin to let go, they are going to rebel.  At some point, I will need to open up my hands and let them go.

So, I find myself with this deep desire to grasp something.  I have a craving inside to grab ahold of something will all my might, but if I grab onto anything too tightly, it acts like water and disappears. 
This puts me in quite a predicament.

What I have found is that it is no accident that I have this deep desire inside to grab onto something.  If I grab onto God with all my might and squeeze him close to my chest, he only increases in my life.  The tighter I squeeze and the closer I pull, the more he reveals himself to me. 

Therefore, my suggestion is:  Grab GOD (not religion, not Church) but GOD himself with all of your might and hold all of his blessings WITH OPEN HANDS.