Does God give high fives?

We have a preschool in our church building and one of the great joys of that fact is the tiny handed high fives I sometimes get on my way into my study (don’t worry we all sanitize first, sigh). What can make one smile faster and more purely than a tiny kid dressed as Spiderman, you know because it is a random Tuesday, giving you a high five? Thanks to covid this isn’t supposed to happen, but when kids get together and guys like me are around, high fives are gonna happen and everyone will be better off for it. 

I have a bit of a history of high fives. I taught snowboarding and played high school football and ran marathons and have three lads of my own so I have had the occasional high five and I know the power of receiving one when you really need a boost and the weird boost you get from giving one. 

What do high fives have to do with God and spirituality? I am glad you asked:)

Morning quiet times, or devotional times in general, tend to have an energizing aspect to them. People who set aside some of their precious time to meditate, journal, read scripture, pray and the like often tell me that they feel calmer and more energetic for having spent their time with such intentions. I know it is true for me the time spent is returned with interest. 

This has me thinking about high fives because high fives are energizing. They tell us we have been seen/noticed, they tell us we have been approved of and encouraged to keep doing whatever it is we are doing, they tell us we are in relationship and community and accepted. When two people high five they both put in very little energy and the result is they both walk away with more energy than when they started. 

Maybe I am starved for human contact thanks to covid but I cannot help but wonder if it is constructive to some of us to think of our daily practices as an effort on our part of high-fiving God, and being high-fived back. It wouldn’t take you long to come up with verses about how God sees us, accepts us, wants to be in relationship with us, and that he can encourage us. 

Maybe next time you are waffling, trying to decide if you really want to get out of bed to pray, or if you really have to pick up a bible or meditate, think to yourself, “do I want a high-five right now?” 

I bet that will help, at least once.