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www.truthworks.com 1 SEPT 04 devotion archive |
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EXCESS BAGGAGE I tell you the Truth, Wow! Today marks the beginning of nine years of email devotions! As in the past, each year has been so significant for so many reasons and I expect this one to be as unique as the previous. It’s been an awesome summer for me and the college students I minister to at home. Please allow me to say “hey” to the Off Campus gang and also a special welcome back to my awesome friend Vic who God used to prompt me to start this ministry so many years ago (who also aided me so well in rehabbing my knee this summer!) So let’s get started! <*))))))< <*))))))< <*))))))< <*))))))< <*))))))<
Matthew 11:28-30 In case you’ve been sleeping for the past couple months, it’s the beginning of a new school year! When I was in college, this was always my favorite time! It was a time for a fresh start, a clean slate! Those classes I struggled with last semester are behind me. The class I had to drop is history (or was that calculus?) Everything is ahead of me and everything is behind. Getting a fresh start can be a great feeling. A fresh start can make us light on our feet with almost an excitement of anticipation in the air.
Unfortunately, not all
of us may feel real spunky. It may just so happen that some of us are
dragging. If we were carrying only one small bag, it wouldn't be too bad. We can still press on with the small bag. But when we begin to fill our bag and then pick up more baggage, we can suddenly find ourselves overwhelmed with the burdens of this world. That’s bad news, but there is good news! Jesus says, “My yoke is easy and my burden is light.” If Jesus promised us that His burden is light, then why do we feel so much weight? The answer lies in the yoke. The yoke is the key. A yoke is a device which links the shoulders of two animals (oxen, horses, etc) together which allows them to pull much more weight than they could as individual beasts. Jesus says that His yoke is easy. The yoke is easy when we lay our burdens before Him and leave them there, trusting Him. It’s like carrying luggage. Every burden we carry is a piece of luggage. God’s desire is for us to lay the luggage down. Give it a rest and trust Him to carry the load. His yoke is what carries our extra baggage. Maybe you’ve tried that before. You experience the peace and joy of knowing that Christ is pulling with you, carrying your weight. But the next day, you wake up and find the burden is back. What do we do then? Very simply, we lay it down again. And again. And again. Until we eventually begin to understand that the yoke of Jesus Christ is a life long yoke – He walks with us daily, up hills and down. Through the valley, across the stream and into the desert. His yoke is what gets us through. We need to daily lay our burdens down. And when we allow Christ to walk with us daily, we are stronger, agile and full of life. But there is another reason why God wants my load to be light. We’ll dive into that subject next time. Until then, lay it down. Every day. Your Servant, <*))))))< <*))))))< <*))))))< <*))))))< <*))))))< <*))))))< Prayer Requests (and Praises!) Please remember two gentlemen who I work with. Andrew, my boss, is recovering from abdominal surgery. And Roger, another manager, is looking after his 90 year old father who was hospitalized this past week. - Randy Please reply if you have prayer requests, comments or simply need an open ear. I always enjoy hearing from you. <*))))))< <*))))))< <*))))))< <*))))))< <*))))))< <*))))))< Copyright © 2004 Truth Works Publishing. All rights reserved.
Unless otherwise specified, all scripture quotations taken from the HOLY BIBLE,
NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. NIV.
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