“Come to me, all of you who are tired and have heavy loads, and I will give you rest.” Matthew 11:28
This year, my middle son decided that rather than purchase more toys for his niece and nephew at Christmas, he was going to gift them with a “Choose Your Own Adventure” type of present. To help them select their “adventure day” with Uncle Justin, he made a binder of options that contained brochures to various local establishments with their faces photo-shopped into each advertisement.
The numerous options made it a tough and difficult decision, but bowling was the selected adventure; this gift was finally cashed in last Saturday. I was fortunate enough to be included in this extravaganza, so off to “All Star Lanes” we went, where we learned that this facility really caters to younger bowlers! Not only do they have bumpers, but they also have a fabulous invention called a bowling ramp! With the bumpers blocking the gutters and the ramp guiding the ball straight down the lane, success was pretty much guaranteed with every turn! The only challenge was getting the ball on top of the bowling ramp. When you are three years old, lifting an eight-pound ball is about equivalent to about a fourth of your body weight! However, as much as we tried to discourage him, at times, Max insisted on carrying the heavy weight by himself.
Often he struggled, frequently he would profess “this is heavy”, and occasionally the weight was so overwhelming that he would drop the ball. However, when he would finally surrender and let his loving uncle carry the heavy ball for him, things went so much smoother!
How often we can all relate! Scripture tells us in 1Peter 5:7, “Cast all your anxieties on Him because He cares for you”, yet just like Max wanting to carry the heavy bowling ball, our sinful human nature tends to insist on carrying heavy burdens that we were never designed to carry. Frequently, we carry guilt of past mistakes, worry for the future decisions, bitterness from previous hurts, and stress of the “what ifs?” In addition, when we become self-reliant and try to manage all of these burdens by ourselves, we become overwhelmed and the weight of these burdens starts to show signs of concerning strain. But when we surrender these problems and allow the Lord to carry these burdens for us, our lives become much more peaceful and things seem to resolve themselves in a much smoother fashion.
Jesus send each of us a special invitation in Matthew 11:28 when He states, “Come to me, all of you who are tired and have heavy loads, and I will give you rest.”
Praying that you will be able to lighten your load this week by surrendering your burdens and concerns to Jesus.
In His Love,
Mrs. Palka