I'm starting a new quiet time study with a book called "Traveling Light; releasing the burdens you were never intended to bear" by Max Lucado. I'm really excited about it because I have such a tendency to hold on to the very things I need to let go of and let God worry about!
When I travel, I usually pack pretty light, and the same went for our New York trip. (In fact...the boys packed more than I did...hehehe). My packing philosophy has always been "never pack more than you can carry". All I had was one duffle bag, a backpack and a pillow. I used the backpack to carry all our tourist things in the city like water bottles, cameras, maps, etc. (Although you leave Jason in charge of the backpack for one day and he loses the map...hehehe). But after just a few days being out of town, my back was already killing me from sitting in the car all day or else walking all over town and sleeping in a strange bed every night. But still every day i picked up my backpack and insisted on carrying it when we were out rather than accept help. I stubbornly refused when Michael or Jason offered to carry it for me. At the beginning of the trip they had to pry it out of my white knuckle grip each day! (in a very gentlemanly, chivalrous way, of course) But by the end of the trip, I was so tired and my back was aching so much that it only took one inquiring look from Jason for me to submit and gratefully hand it over.
That makes me wonder...what other backpacks am I hanging on to in my life? How many things am I holding on to that God is desperately wanting to carry for me? Why does it take until the very end of the trip when I am so worn out and tired and hurting to finally let go because I just plain don't have the strength to be stubborn about it anymore? Do I think I can out-stubborn God? How many times does it take to realize that I will always run out of strength before He does?
If a father and his family are at the airport, and his 5 year old son tries to take the biggest, heaviest piece of family luggage off the baggage claim, the father doesn't let him sit there and strain. He walks over and says "Here son, let me get that one for you".
And yet here I am trying to wrestle away the biggest and heaviest peices of luggage from my much bigger, much stronger, and much more capable father. Silly me.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Posts
3 comments:
No, if there's no father there, the 5 year old dude carries the dern luggage. Trust me. Hehe.
and as for the real weight - the actual burden, well the l'il dude one day realizes his true Father has been taking care of everything all along, despite the poor boy's wasted efforts, like the Footprints in the Sand poem:
http://www.inspirationalthoughts.co.uk/footprints.jpg
Take comfort in knowing that God is having patience with you and he doesn't give up. But through my experice if you are stubborn long enough he definitely will tap you on the shoulder and let you know, one way or another.
Post a Comment