“Lord, I come to You with open hands. If all I have is You and my next breath, that will be enough” (A prayer a friend of mine taught me).

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about those open hands. Especially after the speaker at Kairos mentioned holding on to your stuff, your dreams, and your life with open hands.

Sometimes, I can live like that and I’m happy. I’m content.

Other times, I live with clenched fists, holding tightly to my things and my ideas about how life should go. Those times are when I’m unhappy and anxious, constantly comparing myself with others in an unhealthy kind of competition.

The truth is that I don’t own anything. It all belongs to God. According to King David the psalmist, the earth and its fullness are God’s. That includes my stuff. That includes me.

Open hands equal surrender. Open hands are my way of saying, Not my will, but Yours.”

My prayer is the prayer Henri Nouwen prayed that I’ve probably quoted here before, but it’s worth repeating:

“Dear God,
I am so afraid to open my clenched fists!
Who will I be when I have nothing left to hold on to?
Who will I be when I stand before you with empty hands?
Please help me to gradually open my hands
and to discover that I am not what I own,
but what you want to give me.”