HOLD ON!

By: Dennis Harworth

          Whenever you hear someone yell out, “Hold on!” you know something extreme is about to happen.  You are either being warned for your own safety or in fun to prepare you for an adventure.  I knew what it meant both ways.  My earliest memory was before I was in kindergarten when my dad would run and pull me in a red Radio Flyer wagon.  That was so exhilarating.  I quickly learned the tighter I was holding on, the faster he would go.  Once I got used to the thrill of the speed, I’d scream out in the midst of my laughter, “Faster, faster!” 

About the same time, I learned a completely different side of holding on.  Let me share this story with you.  My parents were good friends with the family that lived next door to my aunt and uncle.  They had a kid my age and since I would spend my preschool days with my them, they would allow me to go next door and play.  It was a great place to visit; unlike any I had ever seen. This neighbor had a dairy cow, chickens, a mean goat that chased you around, and a full-size horse. 

One day the neighbor kid and I got this crazy idea to actually ride the horse.  So, we dragged a bale of hay next to a large barrel to act as stairs to get onto the horse (once we coaxed it right next to the barrel).  After I finally was able to climb up on the horse, I realized I had never done this before.  Just as I asked “What do I do now?” the kid slapped the horse with a stick.  The last thing I heard was “HOLD ON!” as the horse bolted through the open gate into a huge open field.  I was holding on all right – for dear life!  You have to get the picture of this.  Here I am, a chubby four-year-old kid with such short legs they were sticking straight out on top of this massive horse.  I am holding on like my life depended on it, bouncing up and down like a paddle ball as the horse galloped towards the railroad tracks on the edge of the property.  As the horse finally started to slow down (on its own), the train blew its whistle and spooked it.  This caused the horse to make a radical turn to the left, jump over a fence to one of the stalls, and high tailed it back home.  All the while, my grip is getting tighter and tighter and I am screaming (no laughter here) “Whoa, whoa!”  Thirty minutes later we were able to get the horse back next to the barrel so I could climb off. 

With these two vivid memories, I forever learned the lesson to “hold on”.  Recently at the church I attend I was reminded to “hold fast to the profession of my faith”.  What is amazing is this very same church – The Rock Church & World Outreach Center – was built many decades later on the exact same open field in which I took the wild ride on the horse.

          This profession in which the Bible is instructing us to “hold fast” is the acknowledging and publicly confessing of what we believe; trusting with complete confidence in the reliability of God’s promises.  Now get this: “Hold fast” to our faith means to hold on tightly, cling to, so as to prevent us from slipping (Hebrews 2:1) or falling (Hebrews 6:6).  Doesn’t this sound familiar?

Therefore, find out what you believe from the Word of God and hold on to His promises like your life depends on it.  The more you trust Him, the more exciting your adventures of faith will take you on the ride of your life.  So, HOLD ON!