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Running Fingers Through His Hair
Running Fingers Through His Hair
Cory Waddell
Samson is one of the most popular faith heroes in the Old Testament. Indeed, it is accurate to call him a faith hero, for that is how he is described in Hebrews 11:32. We love to tell of his miraculous birth, amazing strength, and ultimate triumph in the Dagon temple. At the same time, Samson is a polarizing figure because he does not fit the mold of the kind of faith hero we expect to see in scripture. While we understand that all men struggle with sin, Samson seems to have had an extra measure of difficulty, compared to other heroes. Several times in the few chapters of his story we see him succumb to sexual sin, anger, and arrogance. Reading through his life, one wonders if there is anything Samson could have done to keep his focus on what was right during those moments of temptation. Perhaps, as one preacher put it, he could have just run his fingers through his hair.
“How would this have helped?” you ask. Samson had a truly unique relationship with God. He was a Nazirite from birth, which meant (in part) that a razor never touched his head. Judges 16:17 tells us this element of his vow was the means through which God imbued him with immense strength. As long has Samson stayed faithful to his vow, God’s Spirit would rush upon him when the time was necessary, and he would display this power. Thus, Samson’s long hair was a very real reminder of the relationship he had with God. It was a reminder of where Samson’s direction, purpose, and guidance were to come from. It was the kind of trait that could have refocused Samson to the ways of truth and morality had he only taken a moment to run his fingers through his hair when temptations surfaced.
Today, none of us has this exact unique relationship with God. However, it doesn’t mean that ours is not special. He is still the source of our spiritual strength, guidance, and purpose. Like, Samson, though, we may struggle with regular temptations that get the best of us. In those times we need to be able to “run our fingers through our hair” as a reminder of the relationship with the Divine that we are trying to preserve. For us, that “long hair” may be a special memorized verse that brings us back to focus. It could be a special object we carry in our pocket, or maybe a song we sing to ourselves. Whatever the trait or object, the interaction is meant to pull us out of a temptation fog and clearly choose to always follow God.
Being a man or woman of God does not make us immune to sin’s power. If anything, it might mean the Devil comes at us with that much more vigor. Having a special token, memory, or action that keeps us centered on God’s will could be an immense help in our walk of faith. Samson could have run his fingers through his hair. What could you do?
