The Power Of A Hug

The Power of a Hug

The wisdom from above is first of all pure. It is also peace loving, gentle at all times, and willing to yield to others. It is full of mercy and good deeds. It shows no favoritism and is always sincere.

James 3:17

Dawn kept blinking as she sorted the files on her desk. Concentrate, she demanded. This is your first day here, and you need this job, remember?

As if she could forget! She was still reeling from the news her husband had given her several weeks earlier when he confessed he was in love with someone else and wanted a divorce.

Dawn looked up a tracking number, wishing she could find answers to her own challenges as easily. How was she going to stay sane with all she had to juggle? Tears threatened to spill onto her cheeks. Get with it, Dawn, she thought. Nobody cares, anyway.

As she turned toward her computer, a cheery voice called from the doorway, “Hi! May I bother you? I need some information.”

Dawn looked up to see a woman whose smile faded as she saw Dawn’s face.

“It looks like you could use a hug!” she said as she held out her arms.

Without hesitation Dawn stood up to lean against the woman’s ample shoulders.

Suddenly the woman was praying in Dawn’s ear: “Lord, you know all the details causing these tears, so I ask you to wipe them away by letting her know you haven’t forgotten her. Help her with her challenges, Lord, and throughout this day and the days ahead, give her a squeeze just as tangible as this one. Let her feel your presence. May she know you are with her.”

Only at her “Amen” did the woman release Dawn from the embrace. Then she pulled a folded tissue from her jacket pocket and handed it to the young mother.

Dawn nodded her thanks, then managed to say, “You don’t know how much I needed your encouragement just now.”

The older woman smiled. “Well, the Lord knew. And he hasn’t forgotten you.”

Oh, Dawn’s unwanted divorce still went through, and she’s still juggling all the responsibilities of being a single mother of three active children. But she knows she has enormous value in the eyes of God, all because of a caring woman’s hug.

—SANDRA

Lord, I’m often reluctant to offer hugs even though they may be exactly what someone needs. Guide my responses, please. And help me not to be afraid of stepping into another’s personal space.

He who receives a good turn should never forget it; he who does one should never remember it. —PIERRE CHARRON (1541–1603), FRENCH PHILOSOPHER