PRESSING ON TO HIGHER GROUND
Part 5

“Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit saith the LORD of hosts. Who art thou, O great mountain?
Before Zerubbabel thou shalt become a plain”
(Zechariah 4:6, 7).

We continue our point No. 6 about lifting up our hands to God.

b. We lift up our hands when we are in desperate need of God

Ezra 9:1-7: “And I sat astonished until the evening sacrifice. And at the evening sacrifice I arose up from my heaviness: and having rent my garment and my mantle, I fell upon my knees and spread my hands unto the LORD my God, And said, O, my God, I am ashamed and blush to lift up my face to thee, my God: for our iniquities are increased over our head, and our trespass is grown up unto the heavens.” Do you notice that He cried out to God at the time of the evening sacrifice? This was a specified time to call upon the Lord.

Psalm 88:9: “Mine eye mourneth by reason of affliction: LORD, I have called daily upon thee, I have stretched out my hands unto thee.”

Psalm 143:6: “I stretched forth my hands unto thee: my soul thirsteth after thee, as a thirsty land.”

c. We lift up our hands to God’s commandments

Psalm 119:48 says: “My hands also will I lift up unto thy commandments, which I have loved; and I will meditate in thy statutes.” Have you ever been reading God’s Word, and something hits you so powerfully that you can’t help lifting up your hands in awe to God?

When Ezra read God’s words to all the people, they all stood up and “lifted up their hands: and the bowed their heads and worshipped the LORD . . .” (Nehemiah 8:5, 6).

d. We lift up our hands when in the battle

I am always challenged by the story of Aaron and Hur holding up Moses’ hands to win the battle against the Amalekites. Do you remember this account in Exodus 17:8-13? The children of Israel, under the command of Joshua, went out to fight against the Amalekites? Moses was up on the hill, lifting up his hands with the rod of God. When his hands were up, the Israelites prevailed. When he got tired and let down his hands, the Amalekites prevailed.

Let’s read what happened: “And it came to pass, when Moses held up his hand, that Israel prevailed: and when he let down his hand, Amalek prevailed. But Moses’ hands were heavy; and they took a stone, and put it under him, and he sat thereon; the one on the one side and the other on the other side; and his hand were steady until the going down of the sun” (verses 11 and 12).

We also have “Amalekites,” haters of God and all that is pro-life, pro-constitutional, and righteous in our land. We have enemies to fight, and our greatest weapon is the power of prayer. Many times the battle is so severe, either personally in your own life, or as we fight the battles in the nation, that we must do more than pray. We must also lift up our hands toward God. There is something about doing this that adds desperation and power to our intercession. It’s not my might, nor by power, but only by the power of the Spirit of God (Zechariah 4:6).

We also need one another as we fight our battles.  No soldier goes to war as a lone soldier. We go against the enemy as an army. Notice how Israel prevailed against the enemy when Aaron and Hur continue to hold up Moses’ hands up to the Lord. They each needed one another. Gather others together with you in the battle.

Blessings from Nancy Campbell

www.aboverubies.org

PRAYER:

“Dear Father, I reach out my hands toward You as I battle in prayer for the victory. I also realize that we need to encourage one another as we intercede. Help me to never miss the prayer meeting where we can fight in prayer together against the enemies of the Lord. Amen.,”

AFFIRMATION:

I am not ashamed to raise my hands in prayer. My intensity in prayer outweighs any embarrassment I may have.

PRESSING ON TO HIGHER GROUND
Part 4

“Wherefore lift up the hands which hang down and the feeble knees; and make straight paths for your feet . . .   ”
(Hebrews 12:12, 13).

6. LIFT UP YOUR HANDS

There are many Christians who don’t like to lift up their hands and yet there are so many Scriptures which encourage us to do this. Apart from the exhortation of the Scriptures, I think it is a natural thing to do. When I am reaching out to God in prayer or lifting up my heart to worship Him in song, I find it is inherent within me to reach out my hands to God. When we are longing after God and thirsting after Him in our inner man, we inherently want to do something tangible. As we lift up our hands to Him, we give action to our inner longings and it becomes more powerful and real to us.

Let’s look at the Scriptures, shall we? I think you’ll be surprised to see how many there are on this subject.

a. We lift up our hands in prayer and worship

1 Kings 8:22, 23: “And Solomon stood before the altar of the LORD in the presence of all the congregation of Israel, and spread forth his hands toward heaven: And he said, LORD God, of Israel, there is no God like thee, in heaven above, or on earth beneath . . .” (2 Chronicles 6:12, 13).

Psalm 28:2. “Hear the voice of my supplication when I cry unto thee, when I lift up my hands toward thy holy oracle.” David was speaking of the Holy of Holies which housed the shekinah glory of God. He longed for God’s presence in his life. He couldn’t contain it only within his heart. He had to lift up his hands toward God.

Psalm 63:1-4: “O God, thou art my God early will I seek thee; my soul thirsteth for thee, my flesh longeth for thee . . . To see thy power and thy glory, so as I have seen thee in the sanctuary. Because thy lovingkindness is better than life, my lips shall praise thee. Thus will I bless thee while I live, I will lift up my hands in thy name.” How can we thirst and long after God without reaching up our hands to Him?

Psalm 134:2: “Lift up your hands in the sanctuary, and bless the LORD.” Do you lift up your hands when worshipping God in the congregation of the believers? This is a biblical admonition. Encourage your children to raise their hands as they worship God. Children are not as inhibited as adults and it’s the best time to get them into the habit while they are young. It should be a habit of their lives and something they should never be embarrassed about. 

Psalm 141:1, 2: “LORD, I cry unto thee . . . Let my prayer be set forth before thee as incense; and the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice.” This Scripture gives us the pattern of coming to God every morning and every evening with the lifting up our hands in prayer. The golden alar of incense, which the priest would light every morning and evening, represented the prayers of the saints (Revelation 5:8; 8:3-5; and 9:13).

Lamentations 2:19: “Arise, cry out in the night: in the beginning of the watches pour out thine heart like water before the face of the LORD: lift up thy hands toward him for the life of thy young children, that faint for hunger in the top of every street.” In the Bible, lifting up the palms or hands is a metaphor for prayer. It is paramount with intercession and prayer.

Lamentations 3:41: “Let us lift up our heart with our hands unto God in the heavens.” If our heart is truly lifted up to the Lord, we will want to lift up our hands to Him too.

I must tell you this funny story about a friend of ours. He had grown up in a very conservative church and came into a church where people were lifting their hands in praise to God. He said in his heart that he would never do such a thing and determinedly kept his hands down. As the worship continued a wasp suddenly stung his elbow and immediately his hand shot up! He realized God was speaking to him and he was never afraid to raise his hands in worship after that!

1 Timothy 2:8: “I will therefore that men pray every where, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting.”

More next week.

Blessings from NANCY CAMPBELL

www.aboverubies.org

PRAYER:

“Dear Father God, my hear reaches out after You. I need You. I want You more than anything else in this world. And therefore I reach out my hands to You too. I cannot help but reach out to You with my whole being. Amen.”

AFFIRMATION:

I am not ashamed to reach out my heart and my hands to the One who created me and also died for me. He is worthy of all my praise and worship.

PRESSING ON TO HIGHER GROUND
Part 3

“Rejoice the soul of thy servant;
for unto thee, O Lord, do I lift up my soul”
(Psalm 86:4).

3. LIFT UP YOUR SOUL

Our souls are our inner being—our mind, emotions, and will. With the challenges and difficulties we face in life, we can easily allow our souls to become downcast and depressed. But David knew that to live in victory he must keep his soul lifted up.

Psalm 25:1 “Unto thee, O LORD, do I lift up my soul.” David confessed these words when facing enemies.

Psalm 143:8, 9: “Cause me to hear thy lovingkindness in the morning; for in thee do I trust: cause me to know the way wherein I should walk; for I lift up my soul unto thee.” To whom does David lift up his soul? To the Lord. We must make this a habit of our lives. It doesn’t happen automatically. We must stir up our soul.

We must speak to our soul to stir it up. Let’s read again Psalm 42:5, 11 and 43:5 where the psalmist stirs up his soul: ”Why art thou cast down, O my soul? And why art thou disquieted within me? Hope in God: for I shall yet praise him, who is the health of my countenance, and my God.”

When you are feeling down and in the dumps, talk to your soul. “Come on soul, trust in the Lord. Look up. Rejoice in the Lord.” And begin to praise the Lord instead of moaning and groaning.

4. LIFT UP YOUR FACE

Job 11:14, 15: “If iniquity be in thine hand, put it far away, and let not wickedness dwell in thy tabernacles. For then shalt thou lift up thy face without spot; yea, thou shalt e steadfast, and shalt not fear.”

Job 22:26, 27: “For then shalt thou have thy delight in the Almighty, and shalt lift up thy face unto God.”

5. LIFT UP YOUR VOICE

a) Lift up your voice for knowledge and understanding

Proverbs 2:3-6: “Yea, if thou criest after knowledge, and liftest up thy voice for understanding; If thou seekest her as silver, and searchest for he as for hid treasures; Then shalt thou understand the far of the LORD, and find the knowledge of God. For the LORD giveth wisdom: out of h is mouth cometh knowledge and understanding.”

We long for wisdom nd understanding. These blessings also do not land upon us naturally. We must seek after them. We must cry out for them—and even lift up our voice. This phrase, “to lift the voice” literally means to lift our voice so that will carry further. In Jeremiah 2:15 it is translated “yelled.” Here it is: “The young lions roared upon him, and yelled.”

The commentator J. H. Greenstone states: “If it (understanding) does not come at your first call, raise your voice to a higher pitch, put forth greater efforts.” You may need to yell for it! It depends how desperate you are. And you may need to find some place where no one can hear you.

b) Lift up your voice when you sing

My husband grew up in a family of nine children in New Zealand. They all loved to sing in harmony—and sing loud! They milked cows every morning and evening and the boys would sing so loud in the cowshed they could be heard for miles around. Even today, my husband sings with all his heart and encourages everyone else to do so.

Isaiah 24;14: “They shall lift up their voice, they shall sing for the majesty of the LORD, they shall sing aloud from the sea.”

Isaiah 42:11: “Let the wilderness and the cities thereof lift up their voice . . . let the inhabitants of the rock sing, let them shout from the top of their mountains.”

Isaiah 52:8: “Thy watchman shall lift up the voice; with the voice together shall they sing for they shall see eye to eye, when the LORD shall bring again Zion.”

c) Lift up your voice to share good tidings

Isaiah 40:9: “O Zion, that brings good tidings, get thee up into the high mountain; O Jerusalem, that brings good tidings, lift up thy voice with strength; lift it up, be not afraid; say unto the cities of Judah, Behold your God!”

d) Lift up your voice to warn of judgment

Isaiah 58:1: “Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet; and show my people their transgression, and the house of Jacob their sins.”

Blessings from Nancy Campbell

www.aboverubies.org

PRAYER:

”Dear Father God, please save me from apathy and from being so casual in my walk with You. Give me such a hunger to cry after wisdom and understanding and to lift up my voice when I’m praying or singing. Amen.”

AFFIRMATION:

I will not let my soul grovel in the dust. I will stir up my soul to trust in the Lord.

PRESSING ON TO HIGHER GROUND
Part 2

Mine eyes are unto thee, O GOD the Lord: in thee is my trust;
leave not my soul destitute.”
(Psalm 141: 8)

We continue thoughts about LIFTING UP OUR EYES. Blessings come when we open our eyes to the Lord. God revealed visions to Daniel when he lifted his eyes (Daniel 8:3 and 10:5). When Elisha asked God to open the eyes of his servant, he saw the mountain full of horses and chariots of fire protecting them (2 Kings 6:17).

God promises to pluck our feet out of the net we are in when we fix our eyes upon Him. David confesses in Psalm 25:15: “Mine eyes are ever toward the LORD; for he shall pluck my feet out of the net.” The NET states: “I continually look to the LORD for help, for he will free my feet from the enemy’s net.”

We read the amazing deliverance God brought to King Jehoshaphat in 2 Chronicles chapter 20. A huge army of soldiers from three armies came to fight against Judah. Jehoshaphat feared. He had no might against this multitude. What could he do? He turned to the Lord and cried out to Him: “We have no might against this great company that cometh against us; neither know we what to do; but our eyes are upon thee” (verse 12).

What do you do when you don’t know what to do? You turn your eyes to the Lord and look to Him. When your eyes are upon the Lord instead of your circumstances, He will show you what to do. When Jehoshaphat and the people of Judah looked to the Lord, He showed them His plan and God wrought a mighty deliverance for them.

Isaiah 40:26: “Lift up your eyes on high (not on the fleeting things of this world or the difficult circumstances), and behold who hath created these things, that bringeth out the host by number: he calleth them all by names by the greatness of his might; for that he is strong in power.” We lift up our eyes to the One who is all powerful and the Creator of all things. We can trust Him implicitly.

Psalm 123:2: “Behold as the eyes of servants look unto the hand of their masters, and as the eyes of a maiden unto the hand of her mistress; so our eyes wait upon the LORD our God, until he have mercy upon us.” The servant must keep his eyes upon his master to be ready to do his bidding. A faithful servant knows his master so well that he knows what to do by the look of his master’s eyes or his hand movements. We do not look to the Lord in vain. We look to Him to know Him, to hear His soft whisper, to follow His guidance, to know His will strongly in our hearts.

Looking to the Lord should become a lifestyle. We inherently keep our eyes upon Him. It becomes the habit of our lives. May God help each one of us to live in this realm.

Read these further Scriptures to be encouraged today: Palm 121:1; 123:1, 2; 141:7, 8; Proverbs 3:5, 6; Isaiah 40:26-31; Luke 21:28; John 4:35; and Hebrews 12:1, 2.

2. LIFT UP YOUR HEAD

Psalm 24:7-10: “Lift up your heads, O ye gates; and be ye lift up, ye everlasting doors; and the King of glory shall come in. Who is this King of glory? The LORD strong and mighty, the LORD mighty in battle . . . the LORD of hosts, he is the King of glory.” The gates of the city must be lifted up when an earthly king arrives. We must also open up the gates of our hearts and minds to welcome our King of kings. He is the One who is strong and mighty. He is the One who will help us fight our battles! He is the God of the heavenly armies. We can’t do it on our own. In the flesh, we tend to open our minds to our problems, to the “poor me” attitude, to the overwhelmingness all around us and our gates are closed to the Lord.

Dear mother, lift up your head today. Open up the gates of your mind and heart to the Lord. He will lift you up to a new plain. To higher ground. As the hymnwriter says: “My heart has no desire to stay where doubts arise and fears dismay; Though some may dwell where those abound, my prayer, my aim, is higher ground.” Can you say Amen?

He has promised to be “the lifter of your head” (Psalm 3:3). He will “lift up your head above your enemies” (Psalm 27:5, 6). Read also Luke 21:28.

PRAYER:

“Dear Father, forgive me for looking to my own resources and trusting in my understanding instead of looking to You. Help me to look to You first in every situation. Amen.”

AFFIRMATION:

My eyes are continually toward the Lord.