A Heavy Load

Bible Reading: Hebrews 12:1-3

Luke groaned as he came into the house and dropped his backpack on the table with a thud. “This backpack is so heavy!” he said. “It hurts my shoulders and really slows me down.”

“Well, let’s see if there’s anything we can take out to lighten it up a bit,” said Mom. She unzipped Luke’s backpack and started pulling things out. “Look at all this stuff!” she said. “You have an old pair of shoes in here, an overdue library book, and even some rocks! No wonder this bag has been weighing you down.”

“Oops!” said Luke. “I forgot I put those things in there. I guess it’s pretty silly to carry around all that heavy stuff.”

Later that evening, Luke seemed upset after reading an email from one of his friends. “What’s wrong?” Mom asked.

Luke sighed. “Jake wants me to come to his birthday party, but I’m still mad at him.”

Mom frowned. “I know he hurt you when he accused you of stealing his bike, but that was months ago, and he apologized, didn’t he?”

Luke nodded. “Yeah, but it still bugs me.” He scowled. “Besides, Lance and Jasper are going to be there, and I don’t want to see them either. Lance lost the new baseball mitt Grandpa gave me when I let him borrow it, and Jasper got me in trouble when he told our teacher I did something I didn’t do.”

“That’s quite a load you’re carrying,” said Mom. “It reminds me of your heavy backpack.”

“My backpack?” asked Luke. “Why?”

“Like you said, it’s pretty silly to carry around heavy stuff you don’t need,” said Mom. “But it’s even worse to carry bitterness in your heart because you refuse to forgive old hurts from the past. Unload it, and you’ll find it much easier to run the race Jesus calls you to run without all those heavy feelings weighing you down.”

“But how can I unload it?” asked Luke.

“By giving it to Jesus,” said Mom. “Share your hurt and anger with Him and ask Him to replace them with His love. It can be a long process sometimes, but if you depend on Him to take away your anger and bitterness, He will help you forgive those who have hurt you.” – Trudy Vander Veen

How About You?

Do you hold on to anger and store up hurts? Do those feelings seem like a heavy weight in your heart? It’s time to unload them. When bitterness creeps in, go to Jesus and give your hurt and anger to Him. He’ll begin to replace your feelings of bitterness with His love so you can forgive those who have hurt you.

Today’s Key Verse:
Hebrews 12:1 Let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which
so easily ensnares us. (NKJV)

Today’s Key Thought:

Unload bitterness from your heart