We live in a Jewish neighborhood and often see Jewish men with their prayer shawls and fringes dangling down at their sides as they walk. The fringes were God’s idea, intended to help His people remember the law and to obey it. God commanded Moses:
Speak unto the children of Israel, and bid them that they make them fringes in the borders of their garments throughout their generations, and that they put upon the fringe of each border a cord of blue: and it shall be unto you for a fringe, that ye may look upon it, and remember all the commandments of Jehovah, and do them; and that ye follow not after your own heart and your own eyes. Numbers 15:38-39 ASV
A while ago I saw a Jewish man crossing the street with his little boy. I wish I had been able to take a picture to share with you. The dad was a few steps ahead of his son who had a firm grip on the end of one of his dad’s fringes. The fringe formed a link between the two, with the dad leading the way. That picture stayed in my mind for days.
Do our prayers bridge the gap for our children? Do we lead the way with our prayer lives, so that they will be helped safely across the dangerous roads of life? Has our satisfaction with God drawn them to want to know Him more?
God gave the Israelites the fringes as a visual reminder of His commandments. The fringes were for them to look upon, remember, and do God’s will, not their own. They were not to follow after their own hearts and their own eyes, in other words, they weren’t to live for self-gratification.
Neither are we. God made us for for His glory and He wants us to seek Him. He said, “I have made them for my glory” (Isaiah 43:7, 55:6 NLT). And He calls to us, “Seek the Lord while He may be found, call on Him now while He is near” (Isaiah 55:6). This is not about outward conformity or geographic closeness; it’s about a heart for Him, drawing near to the One who loved us enough to die on the cross for us. Are we seeking Him and following Him? Do we want His will more than we want our own? No matter how we may have failed, it’s a comfort to know that our Lord is continually praying for us. He will never give up on His own. His love and grace are a rich cord, our lifeline, ever drawing us closer to Himself.
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