My wife and I serve as greeters at our church, and in the midst of enjoying exchanging smiles and greetings with folks last Sunday, I happened to notice a trio walking along on the other side of the lobby. It was a young man and what appeared to be his two sons. One of the boys looked to be about 7 or 8 years old, and the other was 2 or 3 years younger. There was nothing about the scene that would have folks reaching for their video cameras, just a dad holding his younger son by the hand as they made their way toward the hallway that leads to our youth department. It was another welcome, encouraging, and heartwarming reminder that everything in our country isn’t lost yet. But the thing that caught my attention was that the little boy had reached across and was gripping his father’s wrist with his other hand as they walked along. That was a bit unusual, and it seemed like God might have something He wanted to say to me about it.
Something about them led me to think that they were probably newcomers. The lad could have been experiencing a heightened level of anxiety from being in new and unfamiliar surroundings, with so many people rushing around in every direction. Being confronted with all those unknowns would make the need for a little extra sense of security understandable.
An Unexpected Message ~
But for whatever the reason, God decided to apply His heavenly highlighter to the scene and deliver a brief but unforgettable message. In a nutshell, it’s simply this. There’ll be times when
the surroundings are unfamiliar and intimidating, when the circumstances are hectic, confusing and rapidly changing, and when the destination is unknown and the path ahead is unclear. There’ll be times when just knowing that our Heavenly Father has you by the hand doesn’t feel like it’s quite enough. Those are times when we need to reach out and grab hold of Him and hang on with both hands.
As I watched them head down the hallway, I pondered all the new and unprecedented forms of evil confronting us in this morally bankrupt country. I thought about the rapid and unpredictable changes being thrown at us and the pressures brought on by the hectic pace of life. That picture of the little boy holding onto his father with both hands became incredibly compelling. It sounded like a great idea, but the question was how to actually do it.
When we contemplate holding onto God, we run headlong into the realization that we’re talking about a God we cannot see and a hand we cannot feel. So, what are we supposed to 
grab onto and what are we supposed to hold on with? And most importantly, does this idea have any Scriptural support, or is it just one of those mental pictures we dream up in an effort to feel better when times are tough? Does God, Himself, ever really suggest anything like this at all?
Questions Answered ~
Those are valid questions, and thankfully, it was an issue God did not ignore. He didn’t just approve the idea of His children holding onto Him. He repeatedly admonished it. The following examples should be sufficient to dispel any doubts. He said:
For if you carefully keep all these commandments which I command you to do—to love the Lord your God, to walk in all His ways, and to hold fast to Him—then the Lord will drive out all these nations from before you… (Deuteronomy 11:22–23 NKJV)
You shall fear the Lord your God; you shall serve Him, and to Him you shall hold fast… He is your praise, and He is your God, who has done for you these great and awesome things which your eyes have seen. (Deuteronomy 10:20–21 NKJV)
You shall walk after the Lord your God and fear Him, and keep His commandments and obey His voice; you shall serve Him and hold fast to Him. (Deuteronomy 13:4 NKJV)
But take careful heed to do the commandment and the law which Moses the servant of the Lord commanded you, to love the Lord your God, to walk in all His ways, to keep His commandments, to hold fast to Him… (Joshua 22:5 NKJV)
God’s intention is clear in both the Hebrew and the English translations. God wants His children to hold fast to Him. Though there’s no confusion about the directive, how we’re
supposed to do it might not be so obvious at first glance. After all, we’re finite people. We live in a physical, tangible world, and we’re used to contacting the world around us in ways that involve our sensory apparatus. So, when we hear an admonition to hold fast to something or someone that we can’t see, touch, hear, smell, or taste, that can seem problematic. But God, of course, was aware of our limitations in that area.
Instructions Provided ~
God designed ways for us to hold onto Him that provide us with visible, tangible reinforcement. The key to that reinforcing feedback is found in the surrounding context virtually every time God directs His people to hold fast to Him. The answer lies in that very familiar concept of obedience. According to God, the way to hold fast to Him isn’t found in simply repeating a professed internal belief. It comes to life and unfolds its reassuring comfort when we respond to His call to keep His commandments and obey His voice (Deut. 13:4). Holding fast to Him becomes real when we honestly endeavor to walk in all His ways (Joshua 22:5).
It turns out that holding onto the God we cannot see isn’t as complicated as we might have thought. That reassuring hold on our Father’s hand begins with listening to His voice and setting out to do what He said. Reaching out to Him can begin with the simple act of picking up a Bible. The written Word is one of God’s primary means of revealing Himself to us. The further we drift away from our personal contact with the Word of God, the further we remove ourselves from an abiding consciousness of His presence and the less likely we are to lay hold of the comfort and assurance that comes with holding fast to Him.
Another Way to Hold On ~
But as the TV info-mercials like to say, “But wait…there’s more.” In addition to giving us the written Scriptures as a means of holding onto Him, God sent us the living, breathing 
embodiment of His Word in the person of His only begotten Son. In Jesus, the Word became flesh and dwelt among us (John 1:14 NKJV). And when He had accomplished our redemption and returned to Heaven, He sent another means of holding fast to the Father. Jesus sent His Spirit to indwell every one of His followers – and one of the ways we can hold more tightly to God is by reaching out to those around us in whom He dwells. As I’ve said for many years, “Most of those times when I’ve felt like God had just walked into my life, He was wearing somebody else’s shoes.”
I can’t recall a time when we as individuals and as a nation ever needed to be more strongly connected to the presence and power of God. Jesus’ followers readily testify to being held in the Father’s hand, yet many seem paralyzed by fear and anxiety. So certainly now is the time to experience the courage, the peace, the freedom, and the victory over fear that comes when we grab hold of Him and hang on tightly with both hands.
“TWEETABLES” ~ Click to tweet and share from the pull quotes below. Each one links directly back to this article through Twitter.
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- “When we contemplate holding onto God, we run headlong into the realization that we’re talking about a God we cannot see and a hand we cannot feel. So, what are we supposed to grab onto and what are we supposed to hold on with?” @GallaghersPen (Click here to Tweet)
- “According to God, the way to hold fast to Him isn’t found in simply repeating a professed internal belief. It comes to life and unfolds its reassuring comfort when we respond to His call to keep His commandments and obey His voice (Deut. 13:3).” @GallaghersPen (Click here to Tweet)
- “That reassuring hold on our Father’s hand begins with listening to His voice and setting out to do what He said. Reaching out to Him can begin with the simple act of picking up a Bible. The written Word is one of God’s primary means of revealing Himself to us.” @GallaghersPen (Click here to Tweet)
- “The further we drift away from our personal contact with the Word of God, the further we remove ourselves from an abiding consciousness of His presence, and the less likely we are to lay hold of the comfort and assurance that comes with holding fast to Him.” @GallaghersPen (Click here to Tweet)
- “When Jesus had accomplished our redemption & returned to Heaven, He sent another means of holding fast to the Father. His Spirit indwells each of His followers. One more way we can hold more tightly to God is by reaching out to those @ us in whom He dwells.” @GallaghersPen (Click here to Tweet)
Check out Ron’s book, “Right Side Up Thinking in an Upside Down World ~ Looking at the World through the Lens of Biblical Truth” 
Gallagher's Pen ~ 
My sincere apologies for my tardiness sir, but late is almost always better than never. I’m a big fan of leftovers, and this sir was a gourmet meal of wisdom. While not surprised by your always keen observations and godly insight that comes from your years of walking with our Lord and learning His ways, your mastery of the written word never ceases to amaze me. As great as your oral storytelling is, the mind pictures you create with your written words are as much or perhaps a slight bit more vibrant.
You always create mind pictures as I read your posts, and this one was no different. I could picture the lean, tallish dad slowly guiding his young sons into these foreboding new surroundings. I could almost hear what his whispers of reassurance he was telling his boys. Did you notice how he was almost shuffling as he half-stepped to make sure he didn’t rush or push his young, timid, little guy? And most importantly, did you notice where the father’s focus was? It was on his children. He could not care less how goofy he may have looked walking hunched over and shuffling along as though he was trying out for a school play at Notre Dame. His awkward gait made him look like a giant in this youth teacher’s eyes.
Next, your words led me to ask, “What do I hold onto when I reach for God?” Of course, I knew you would answer my question. You always do. I thought about the words “hold fast.” I thought “grip onto, affix, bond.” All are words that I never really thought about how they apply to my spiritual life before. Thank you for giving me food for thought for the coming days.
I also asked myself, “Whose hand is on top?” Hoping you didn’t just snort your tea there my friend. As any man of our vintage knows, we must always try to get the “upper hand.” When we shake hands for the first time with someone, we instinctively begin maneuvering with the other fella to see whose hand ends up on top. It’s almost Sumo-sized thumb wrestling to see who can position themselves and get just tre right cant to come out the victor. As a believer in the firm handshake, daddy had to teach me not to try and break the other guy’s in the process, I’ve mastered the “press in and match firmness” technique. In other words, the “I’ll be firm but won’t hurt you any more than you hurt me pal” method. Of course, I’ve been known to place my free left hand on top of the handshake too. Sneaky, eh? But I digress. Back to whose hand is on top. Ever think about how you gripped your child or grandchild’s hands? You place your larger, stronger hand over theirs, don’t you? God does the same thing. It’s important to note here that we’re holding onto our child’s hand more than our child is holding onto ours. God does the same thing. How reassuring is that?
Of course, the thought that you too must have some Cherokee Indian in you floated through my mind to, as I noted that you always provide the “how” to your readers. Yep, now I know that made you spit out your tea.
And to close, my final thought on your masterful post, beyond my thanks for sharing your vast wisdom with us and of course my prayer for God’s blessings upon you, Ms. Diane, and your whole tribe is, “To hold onto God in our journey, we have to walk where He is going.” Praying you a great week my friend, and the benefit of being five days late in getting to this is that I won’t have to wait so long to enjoy and grow from your next installment.
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Now I’m the one who has to apologize for being tardy. Our running around was more hectic than usual this week (not like the chores you have to face, just family issues, planning and prep for visitors and a couple of trips we’re trying to balance with other things, etc.) and I didn’t get to your response till last night. But it brought the kind of uplifting encouragement that hearing from you always brings with it. And just so you know, the Cherokee comment was definitely a tea (or coffee in my case) spitter.
I think you did a much better job with visualizing the situation I wrote about than I did, and the “whose hand is on top” point was insightful and heartwarming on several levels. And the other thing that I appreciated was the method you learned about hand shaking. I don’t know how many folks I’ve greeted at church in my time, but I think I’ve pretty much gone through the spectrum. In the past few years, I’ve learned to really appreciate the guys who have learned to adjust their grip a bit. Having arthritic issues going on in my hands and wrists, especially the right one, I dread those guys who want to demonstrate their capacity to inflict pain. I could be happier to see them if I didn’t have to feel them as well. Sometimes I wear a brace just to slow down their “grab and crush” impulse, but that doesn’t always help either.
Anyhow, thanks once again for bringing the extra smiles and that characteristic dose of encouragement that probably seeps out through the pores of your skin. Our prayers for you and the Cross-Dubya family continue, of course, especially in the midst of the awful heat plaguing you guys right now.
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I’m spending some time in Ps. 119. Your thoughts echoed some what I think the Psalmist says there. What a lovely picture and supportive scriptures reminding us to cling to God.
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Thank you so much for taking the time to send your encouraging note, Debbie, and please forgive me for being so terribly late responding. It has been a more challenging week than usual around the Gallagher compound and I’m behind on everything. But that does not diminish my heartfelt gratitude for your gracious response. Thanks, too, for your mention of Psalm 119–what a challenging and powerful testimony that is to the vital role of the Word of God in our lives. I hope you get to multiply the blessings it gives you by sharing your insights with others.
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I’m hanging onto God as tightly as I possibly can, Ron, especially in this day and time. His is the voice of reason, hope and sanity in this world so fraught with distress and troubles. May I lean upon Him and His Word more and more as the days unfold.
Blessings!
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Me, too, Martha. With the unprecedented levels of insanity and demonically inspired depravity being thrust upon us every day, the thought of drifting away from an awareness of God’s presence feels especially threatening. Besides, we need the courage that His presence gives us to engage the enemy. May God help both of us to hang on to Him tighter than ever and to walk with Him wherever the path leads. Blessings back to you, my friend.
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