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WEEKLY ENCOURAGEMENT
Updated: Tuesday, July 15, 2008
THINGS THAT WEIGH US DOWN
Last week my husband was able to play his favorite sport-----golf. Here is Germany it is not easy to find a course that will allow you to play without belonging to a club. Now we have found one near us and my husband is delighted!
So, as I was saying, my husband got to play and since I have not gotten into this game yet, I had the privilege of being his caddie. When we arrived at the course, and began unpacking the car, I lifted the bag of clubs, and wondered how long I would be able to manage those things! Then, we needed something to drink, so I began figuring out how to juggle two drinks. The sky was a little overcast, so needless to say we might need an umbrella. Was it cool enough that we might need a jacket????? Now, I hope you are getting the picture. With all this "stuff", I would be quickly over-loaded and unable to perform my job as caddie.
Hebrews 12:1 says, "Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside ever weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us and let us run with patience the race that is set before us." The words that recently stood out to me were "lay aside ever weigh". Since the next part of the verse says, "and the sin"," the weight" are things that are not necessarily sinful. They are things that load me down and hinder my walk with the Lord.
I began to consider what these things could be. In my case, I believe one weight is business. This business involves all good things, and even the right things for a Christian woman to do, but simply too many of them. It is easy to become so busy "serving the Lord" that we have little time to just commune with Him. They become a weight. These weights vary in each of our lives. They could be hobbies, plants that require a lot of time, being in charge of various activities at church, involved in clubs and activities for the family, too big of a house that requires so much time to keep clean. We might be weighted down with the problem because we can't say "no".
A weight can also be the expectation of others, or even the expectation we have of ourselves. Just in the last few years, I have come to realize, that I often carried the expectations of others around with me. This became a burden that was heavy to bear. Paul admonishes us to lay these weights aside. This shows us that we clearly have a choice.
Back to my job of being my husbands golf caddy. My husband saw my dilemma, and came to my rescue. He opened up the wheels on the cart that I had overlooked. We combined our two waters into one and clicked the container into its place on the cart. Meanwhile, every trace of rain had vanished, as the sun's rays began to warm us. It was clear we didn't need a jacket or an umbrella. Conclusion: all the added weights were not necessary.
Jesus said: "Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." Matthew 11:28
"Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God." Hebrews 12:2 POINT TO PONDER:Take some time to consider what is weighting you in your life? Are you more occupied with the weights or with the Lord Himself? Hebrews 12:2
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- Sandy Hastings July 15, 2008 |
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