The Human Touch

Background: I watched a young lady stand at the altar of our church. She participated in the prayer and appeared to have received whatever she came for. But when another person came to her and embraced her, assuring her that she had the victory, she broke down and wept in their arms. The human touch alone can cause freedom to come in one’s life.

I had the awesome opportunity to sit with my almost 91 year old grandfather, just chatting and catching up on what was going on in each other’s lives. I chose to hold his hand as we sat and talked and it was obvious that holding his hand was meaningful to him because he never released my hand for the 25-30 minutes we sat and talked. I’ve held several babies recently and who doesn’t like the touch of a baby (less than a year) or the feeling of them resting on your shoulder? I must admit that there are certain ways that my husband holds me that just send my affection for him through the roof. The human touch is amazing.

An embrace from an old friend, the handshake sealing a business transaction, they have something in common. Although no words have to be spoken, the touch itself speaks of that person’s value to you. When a touch is genuine, it can be felt in the soul. The opposite can be true as well if a touch is not genuine.

In the passage about the Proverbs 31 woman, there are 5 people or groups of people that she “touches”.  Her spouse, children, those she works with, the poor and needy, and finally, God. I can assume since this woman has children, her husband is saying there is nobody like her and the passage stating she enriches his life and only does him good, that she was touching her man. We can get really busy and neglect to give him a simple caress of the arm or pat on the behind. Remember the human touch is powerful, so make sure you are ready for the response. The children in the passage are described as praising their mother. It does not speak of a physical touch when describing her children, but the result of her touch can be deducted from their praise.

Once again, the passage does not speak of the physical touch, but in order for this woman to do what she did, there had to be a component of touch with her clients and her servants. In work environments, touching is a lot of times frowned upon as it has been abused in the past. But an affirmative pat on the shoulder (no caressing) can boost the confidence of a coworker or employee and a firm handshake brings closure. The poor and needy she stretches her hand to. When people are down and out, they know it. Ridicule and judgement doesn’t make their situation better, but a helping, compassionate hand does.

The final person that the P31 touches is God. She touches him in prayer and in praise/worship. The way she lived her life touched God. She is described as fearing, or in awe, of God. It’s obvious that He touched her in return, as she was an unusually blessed woman.

Night night kisses, midnight cuddle sessions, a compassionate hug, or a firm pat on the shoulder all speak in a language not heard with the ears but with the soul. Don’t forget to share the power of the human touch with someone who needs it today.

References: Proverbs 31: 11-12, 15, 20, 28, 30b