Mensa Otabil - Strengthen Your Hands (10/02/2025)
Hebrews Chapter 12, Verses 12 and 13:
Therefore, strengthen the hands which hang down and the feeble knees, and make straight paths for your feet so that what is lame may not be dislocated but rather be healed. This is a word of encouragement to us. We need strength to push on throughout a year such as this and every other year. We need strength for every day, strength for every week, strength for months, and for the year because sometimes we all get tired. We get tired of trying, tired of working hard; we get tired of trying to achieve something with our lives. So, as we begin this year, may the Almighty God fuel each one of us and give us strength to push on and not be feeble or dislocated.
In our passage for today, God gives us three instructions related to strength that we must develop in three areas of our lives. The first one: He says, «strengthen their hands that hang down.» Strengthen your hands. Hands normally have to do with your work or your battles. We fight battles with our hands, so when God says, «strengthen your hands,» it means that we must work hard and fight on. There will be battles to be fought, but God says to strengthen your hand, work hard, and push on. For each one of us today, I want to encourage you: strengthen your hands, work hard, fight on, and push on. May the Lord give you the strength in your hands never to grow weary.
The second instruction He gives is to strengthen their feeble knees. The knees relate to our ability to stand. God says that we must strengthen our ability to stand because whatever happens this year, we are going to stand. I like when Moses and the children of Israel were going to cross the Red Sea. When they reached the edge of the sea, and the Egyptian army was behind them, Moses spoke to the people and said, «Stand still and see the salvation of the Lord.» That’s what we need to do: stand still and see the salvation of the Lord. Strengthen your feeble knees.
If you feel wobbly, like you’re going to collapse, or think you can’t survive this, it’s too hard, just stand. Stand by the grace of God, hold onto the hand of the Lord, and depend on the Word of the Lord. Just stand, because sometimes all you need to do in life is stand to see the salvation God has for you. It may be a tough week for you this week, but if you stand this week, a miracle opens up the next week. This month may be tough, but when you stand, you’ll see something great happen next month because you may not see the mercy and goodness that God has for you if you are not able to stand. So stand, strengthen the feeble knees.
The third thing God says we should do is make straight paths for your feet. Your feet here refer to your movement and direction, meaning be clear about where you are going and what you want to do with your life in the year we have entered. May your hands be strengthened, may your knees be strengthened, and may the Lord make straight paths for your feet, and you will walk in it. I trust God that this year is going to be spectacularly good for you; you will be fruitful on all sides, and I believe the Lord will do it for you.
Let’s share a word of prayer together. Say with me: «Heavenly Father, strengthen my hands for work and for battle. Help me to stand in faith and stay on course, in Jesus' name. Amen.» You will have strong hands; your knees will be strengthened. Your paths will be straight. This year is going to be fruitful for you. Pastor Mensa Otabil, shalom, peace, and life to you.