THE HUG CONNECTION
I am a hugger! There is just something about giving someone a big hug. It connects people to each other in a deep way. When I see a stranger, I do not hug because I am not connected to them in any way. There are several types of hugs. At work, when we have a euthanasia, I ask the client if I can hug them. Some say no, but there are many others that you can tell need that human connection. That type of hug lets them know that I understand what they are feeling because I have had to euthanize several of my pets through the years. It lets them know that I hurt with them. At funerals, I hug the family because I know how it feels to lose a loved one. We all just need that one on one connection. I also hug when I am happy! When I have not seen someone for a long time, I give them a big hug! I know that when someone gives me a hug because they have been touched in some way, after I have given a speech, published a book or written a blog post; it makes me feel like they appreciated what I wrote or said and that gives me encouragement. I have told all of my grandkid’s friends, if they are coming over to share a meal or visit, they have to give nana a hug just like my grandkids have to do.
Right now, we cannot hug. That is very hard for me. When we get back to church services, we will not be able to hug each other or sit close to each other for awhile. That will be so hard for me and others! We have not seen each other in several months. We have not had any kind of connection, other than texting-virtual hugs-facetime-Zoom-calling on phone. I am so thankful that in this time in history, we have those options. But none of those replace a good hug, in my opinion. Now that I am back to work, it is hard to not hug those people who I have worked with for fifteen years. We have no idea in the future, when hugs will become, once again, a reality. I pray that since we have been social distancing, that the human connection has not been lost. But, rather, “the hug connection” will come back into our lives.
When I look at the word hug, I not only think of the physical hug, but it makes me think of a spiritual hug as well. What can we get from a spiritual hug? There are three things I can think of: Hope–Unbelief that can be changed through trust & faith into belief and the Gift. So, let’s think about these three for a few minutes.
- Hope-What is the definition of hope? According to Webster’s: promise of a future-desire of expectations of fulfillment-eager, confident expectation that sustains a person while he or she is waiting patiently for future fulfillment in God. I am hopeful that we as a church family, will be able to meet together again and eventually, hopefully get to hug each other! I also have the hope of leaving this world with its pain-sadness-fear-worry, and living with God in heaven when I die. 1 Peter 1:3-5 reads: “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, who are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.” Hebrews 10:23: “Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who has promised is faithful.” We can have this hope and promise of eternal life, if we have chosen to follow God’s law and served Him faithfully. Our hope rests upon the belief that Jesus died-was buried and rose from the grave to live with God in heaven. This world has no hope! The world is living for themselves. They are planning on a future of more possessions on this earth. Their belief is when they die-they just die. But a follower of God does his best on this earth with what God has given him and looks to a future with God in heaven, if they have hung on to that hope! We as followers of God, are like a kaleidoscope. God takes all of our broken pieces-puts them all together-and shines His light through those pieces, for others to see the beauty of the hope we have in Him. We need that hope right now!
- Unbelief that can be changed through trust & faith into belief -What is the definition of unbelief? According to Webster’s: a person who doubts. A person who has unbelief, does not have confidence or trust that something will actually happen that was promised. When we trust. it involves an element of risk. Some trial has to happen before we can actually understand what trust really means. It is easy for the world to have unbelief, especially with what is happening in the world today. Sometimes we think of trusting God by relating that trust to our circumstances. But trusting God is much more than that. Trusting and belief in God is in SPITE of our circumstances. In Joshua 6, God told the Israelites to march around the city of Jericho and blow their trumpets. This went on for seven days and on the seventh day, the people shouted and the walls of Jericho fell flat. The walls of Jericho were wide enough for a chariot to drive on. The wall was not made like two of the three little pigs houses, in the fairy tale: one of straw and one of sticks. The wall of Jericho was sturdy. Most walls around a city, were used for protection from their enemies. They were usually fifteen feet thick, made of stone, and twenty-five feet high. This wall of Jericho fell inward and this helped the Israelites to have a “ramp” to go into the city and overcome it. These people had to have a lot of belief-faith-trust that what Joshua told them, was from God. Walking around a huge wall which was around a city, blowing trumpets for seven days, could have seemed strange. If the Israelites had not believed and done what God told them to do, the Israelites could have been taken captive, instead of them taking Jericho captive. It is easy to have unbelief, because of the unknown and uncertainty of the future-like we have today. But we need to have belief-faith-trust, that God will do what He promises. If we don’t, we will be lost! We won’t get to see the promise of the glory of heaven. Jeremiah 29:11 reads “For I know the thoughts that I think towards you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.” Conquering the unbelief, turning it to belief, and having trust in God, means having faith that He works out the best for our lives, even when it does not make sense! Take the “un” out of unbelief. Change it to belief!
- Gift-What do you think of when you hear the word gift? Websters defines it as: something given with no strings attached. When I hear the word gift, I think of excitement-happiness-surprise. My little great-granddaughter turned two in the middle of this virus. Since we could not have a party, I went ahead and mailed her present to her. My granddaughter sent me a video of her opening it. She said “what’s in there?” Her little eyes lighting up as she blew me a kiss! No matter how old we get, we all like gifts! There is one gift I especially love and that is the gift that God gave us in the form of Jesus, His only Son, who gave Himself willingly for you and for me on the cross. In the Old Testament, the people of God brought gifts of sacrifice for the atoning of their sins. But under the new law, Jesus gave his sacrifice, His blood & His death, for a one-time atonement for all of mankind. In Hebrews 12, which is right after the “hall of faith” chapter, talking about enduring our lives here on the earth, verse 2 says “looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” Jesus could have saved Himself on the cross, but then He could not save you and me. Romans 6:23 reads “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” I want that gift, don’t you? This gift is not more about what I do, but it is about what Jesus did for us. We must obey His laws, but it is not about you and me. This gift is all about what God gave us (in Jesus) and the gift He will give us (eternal life) when we die!
Hope
Unbelief turned to belief, faith and trust
Gift
Jeremiah 17:7-8 reads: “Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, and whose hope is the Lord. For he shall be like a tree planted by the waters, which spreads out its roots by the river, and will not fear when heat comes, but its leaf will be green, and will not be anxious in the year of drought, nor will cease from yielding fruit.”
Christ is our hope. We have to turn our unbelief into trust. We will receive the gift of eternal life one day when we die. We have the hope in eternal life because of the gift of Jesus on the cross and His resurrection. We have to have all three: hope through Christ-unbelief turned to belief, trust and faith, in whatever our circumstances might be. If we have hope and trust, we will be able to enjoy the gift of eternal life.
Think about these things. If you do not have the spiritual “Hug Connection” we have talked about, get out your Bible and search for the answers or go to someone who is a believer in God to help guide you.
God will see us through this. After this pandemic, we will have learned many lessons. We will be a much better person because of it. Hold firm onto God’s promises! Let one of those lessons be the realization that God is right by our side during this pandemic.
Oh yea! When this virus is over and we are all clear to hug-watch out because I am headed your way with a huge hug!!
Till next time! Keela
(The picture at the first of this blog is my daughter’s oldest and youngest children, Adasen and Iley. I can almost feel that sweet hug right now. To be able to hug, is truly a blessing! Thank you, God!)