My Hand Trembles, But My Heart Does Not

Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, 4and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, 5and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us. (Romans 5:3-5)

Every now and then you come across a quote so remarkable you put it to memory. The recent documentary on the American Revolution gave me one. The minute I heard it, I paused it and replayed it a couple of times and then wrote it down.

As the signers of "The Declaration of Independence" came forward to sign, the second oldest member of the body was Stephen Hopkins. As he signed, he looked across the table at some men and said, "My hand trembles, but my heart does not."

Having been diagnosed with Parkinson's this past year, my tremors are infrequent and hardly noticeable. I do know that at some time in the future they will become present. I continue to make plans for the future, and I strive to do the things that slow its progress: take medication, exercise, and eat good foods (most of the time). 

To me, I heard Hopkins quote and I said, "I love it."

I had read Paul's piece in Romans at least 40 years ago and loved it when I heard it, but I was early in life as a young adult. I hardly had any real suffering to link the thought to, other than the pains of classroom teaching and early work as a school administrator.

As life has moved forward, I've had to endure a few things: leadership and all the trials that can bring; storms - literal storms like an F4 tornado and a few large hurricanes, dust and wind storms and hail, and a few figurative storms such as children and their growing pains, my own and my wife's growing pains as we age.... You get the idea because I'm sure you have a list that is sufficient to compare to mine if not greater.

Paul's suffering is documented in great detail. Beaten as a follower of Christ; shipwrecked after a violent storm as an evangelist and church planter; accused falsely; imprisoned. Not to mention the torment of being a persecutor of the early church before Christ's call, Paul is a tormented and beaten soul. Yet, he says the same as Hopkins in his Romans 5 passage: "I've suffered. The hand may tremble, but the heart does not. I persevere because I have hope." 

The writer of Psalm 119 says something similar in the longest chapter of any psalm written: "It is good that I was afflicted that I might learn your statutes." (v 71) 

The study notes on this passage notes that Luther once said that through affliction, we ask for God's wisdom over our own. Dale Meyer, the one-time Lutheran Hour speaker, once said that it took aging to lessen his resistance to God's Will.

My prayer life has become much more focused in this past year. I understand asking for daily bread much better and to take it a day at a time, and I give thanks for and enjoy those good days as they are present, knowing that will not always be the case. I do not despair, because as Paul writes, I find hope in God's Word.

That hope does not disappoint us or put us to shame. That hope we have in Christ is real and present, regardless of affliction or malady. I'm not alone, not the only one facing affliction or malady. That's a real conversation for us as men of God to have: How do we handle adversity? How do we address our mindset and our posture each day to ask for our daily bread and to give thanks to God for giving us what we need? How do we keep our hearts on God, even though the hand may tremble?

That is our prayer - that God give us the posture to handle adversity as it comes our way in a manner that glorifies him. That we seize the hope given us through the resurrection of Christ and share that hope with others. Hope is real and hope is eternal life in Christ.