Are you a pack mule?

Pile your troubles on God’s shoulders—he’ll carry your load, he’ll help you out. He’ll never let good people topple into ruin. (Psalm 55:22)

Have you been all tied up in carrying your own load, my friends? I know I get there now and again, forgetting to lay down that load and just allowing more and more to be plopped on top of what already weighs me down. My load isn't too heavy - it is just that I wasn't meant to carry it! When we aren't meant to carry the load, it will always seem like a burden. Do you know what a pack mule is? It is bred for the purpose of carrying loads. It is less stubborn than a donkey, but hardier than a horse. They are surefooted, quite intelligent, and very cautious. That means they can carry the burden, while paying close attention to where they put their feet. A pack mule is bred to carry that burden - you are not. You may be intelligent, but do you always pay close attention, knowing exactly where you are going and how to get there? 

If you are anything like me, the answer to that one is 'no'. In fact, you probably stumble along like I do and find yourself out on the edge from time to time, not very surefooted and getting a little wigged-out by the footing crumbling away beneath you. That is because we weren't 'bred' to be carrying that burden! We were 'bred' to lay it down - to allow the one who is most able to carry it take it squarely upon HIS shoulders. We use pack mules because they are able to make the passage where we could not. Why do we resist allowing God to carry the burden while we struggle to make the passage we know full-well we are not going to make on our own? Maybe it is because we are as stubborn as a donkey!

Do you know where the mule has the greatest benefit? In the 'roadless regions' of the world. Do you ever feel like you are cutting a new path - in a place not traveled before? If we use a beast of burden for those 'roadless regions', why do we resist allowing God to take our burden when we are traveling 'regions' where we have never traveled before? It doesn't take a genius to acknowledge the foolishness of trying to bear the burden on a path we aren't equipped to travel with that weight upon our shoulders. It takes a humble person to admit they need help and therein is the 'rub'. We don't like to admit we cannot do it on our own. What silliness is it to bear up under what another actually desires to carry! Just sayin!

Pssst...are you digging in?

"But my people didn't listen, Israel paid no attention; so I let go of the reins and told them, 'Run! Do it your own way!'" (Psalm 81:11-12)

What is the purpose of the reins when riding a horse or having a horse pull a wagon? They let you direct the horse, don't they? At least, that is what someone told me when I mounted a horse as a young girl and attempted to get that large beast of an animal to go where I wanted it to go! Heaven knows, I have had some opportunities to ride some of the most stubborn horses, or at least it seems they were more stubborn than they were willing. No matter how hard I pulled the reins a certain direction....there was no turning them from their chosen destination! Gotta ask - - - - what was the purpose of the reins with these horses? I think they were there for nothing more than decoration! Or was it because I really didn't understand the purpose of the reins?

All I could do with those horses was to "give them the reins" and let them lead where they wanted. As you may very well imagine - it was most often right back to the barn! They did not want to take me down the trail, up the hill, or across the meadow, but wanted a leisurely afternoon enjoying oats and the shade of the barn! Imagine that! Sound like anyone you might be acquainted with in this life? I know God has tried to tug on my reins more than a few times, facing nothing more than my resistance to be "turned" down the trail he desired. In the end, he gave me the reins to head for "greener pastures" as I saw them - oftentimes right into what was not really all that beneficial or rewarding to me.

Guess what the outcome of my resisting the leading of God was? Yep, you guessed it - the pastures turned out to be fields of nothing more than briers and thorns! Isn't it amazing how strong-willed we can be? We put up all kinds of fight - then end up calling out to God to get us out of the briers! If you have ever resisted the 'reins' in your life, then you might have recognized the first failure was in not listening. The lady who taught me to ride when I was in Girl Scouts actually told me to speak to the horse, or use some little click of my mouth to get it moving. Try as I might no amount of sweet talking that stubborn horse did any good. The more I talked, the more he looked at me like I was goofier than goofy! The silly part of this was my believing the horse CARED about what I was asking it to do! In truth, he cared no more about going down the trail on the trail ride than he did about how the stock market was performing that day!

I wonder just how much we are like the horse - hearing, but not really listening. In fact, we just don't care about what God is asking - simply because we have our own agenda, or our "selective hearing" turned on. When this is the case, we usually end up with a little "heel digging" going on, don't we? We dig in, no matter how sweetly God urges us onward. God isn't like us - he doesn't try to manipulate us - he simply asks and then waits. If we care to listen - we enjoy the ride. If we don't - well....you know where that leads you. When God gives us the reins, he is actually allowing us to do our own thing - choosing our own way - even when he knows it will leave us hurt or longing. When we give full rein to something, we are letting our imagination or feelings develop in an uncontrolled way - a very unreliable way to operate. God's choice in giving us full rein is to allow us to realize the futility of our rebellion.

The stubborn horse did insist on a return to the barn, but not until after about 30 minutes of digging in his heels and refusing to move beyond the first few bends in the trail ride. But...he did not get the oats he imagined! Instead, the owner put him in the corral with the others, to be ridden by another. We often set out to get our own way, in belief we will realize a certain end, then find ourselves poorly disappointed with the outcome. Truth is, there is no good thing guaranteed to anyone who takes the reins of control out of the hands of God! Reins serve a purpose - to control the direction and lead down certain paths. I have seen riders so in connection with their horses making reins really unnecessary. The rider and horse just seem to understand the destination. There was a bond and a trust relationship between the two. I think we need the reins less and less as we develop a deep connection with God. In time, we begin to sense his leading, not so much by the tug of the reins, but by the subtle movement of his hand, the simplicity of a word from his lips, and the gentleness of his touch. Just sayin!

So, you will even use my rebellion?

Picture the scene of seas out of control - waves tossing you about like you were a pin pong ball on the surface of the water. The sailors, all highly skilled in their task of steering and controlling the ship with rudder, sail, and their knowledge of the seas - trying desperately to return to shore, making absolutely no headway as they attempt to navigate the churning waters. They look for a "cause" for their present circumstances. They seek out Jonah in the hull of the ship, having "discussed" their circumstances with each other, they were told by him that he was clearly the "cause" of their present danger. Yet, they choose to attempt any other alternative than what he proposed. His proposal - throw me into the sea. I don't know about you, but I have been asked a few time to "throw someone under the bus", but I find the internal struggle with this whole concept just a little unnerving! Giving into the desire to be free of the circumstances and struggling with what may be an 'easy alternative' are common struggles for all of mankind. These sailors did what most of us forget to do - they prayed!

Then they prayed to God, "O God! Don't let us drown because of this man's life, and don't blame us for his death. You are God. Do what you think is best." They took Jonah and threw him overboard. Immediately the sea was quieted down. The sailors were impressed, no longer terrified by the sea, but in awe of God. They worshiped God, offered a sacrifice, and made vows. (Jonah 1:14-16)

God never ceases to amaze me with the many and varied ways he uses to get the message of his power and protection across to his creation. We often don't realize the means God will use until we look back "after the fact" and realize how much God was displaying his power AND his protection in our lives. It is in the "hindsight" where our hard-learned revelation occurs. In all their efforts to escape whatever calamity awaited them if they remained in the storm, they return to Jonah one more time. His answer is the same - throw me overboard. Not exactly the answer I am sure they hoped for at that moment, but the seas are getting more and more miserable to navigate - they are at the end of their rope. They are in a quandary and the only option they have is to PRAY!!! Imagine that! So, they turn to the one they "think" might be willing to listen - the God of Jonah - the one he appears to be running from. After all, it his God which is responsible for the sea's upheaval - at least according to Jonah.

Let's see their prayer a little closer. They turn to the God they really don't serve, but who seems to be in control of their present situation. Many times God uses circumstances to reveal himself - especially to those who don't know him personally already. God had asked Jonah to go to Ninevah because the people there were in need of him and here he stands in the hull of the ship, surrounded by sailors most likely in just as great of a need. Even in Jonah's running away from God, God is using him to touch the lives of people! How is it God can use even our disobedience to speak into the lives of others? I don't really fathom how he does it, but I see it recorded for me over and over in scripture - so I believe it is possible!

They still don't want to throw their newest acquaintance overboard, but he seems to insist this is the only course of action. Look at how they seek to be forgiven even before they take their next step to do as he suggests. Jonah could have said, just turn the ship around, I am heading for Ninevah so God will make this storm quit. It is quite possible his repentance could have calmed the seas. Nope, he insists they throw him into the crashing waves. Why do we find our rebellion such a stronghold in our lives - something we just cannot let go of, getting ourselves deeper and deeper into the thick of it as we continue to hold onto what we clearly need to let go of in the first place? I don't imagine Jonah is alone in his "firmness" of stubborn rebellion. In our rebellion, we frequently don't see any way of escape but to be consumed by that which is a result of our rebellion!

They all agree - it is time to trust Jonah's God to do what "he thinks best". Heathen men, praying to the divine God of the Universe, trust him to "do what he thinks best"! Now, isn't this awesome? God immediately calms the seas and they all stand on the deck of the ship, totally amazed at the power of Jonah's God. I wonder how many actually had the seed of salvation "planted" that day? The power of God on display - the hearts of men changed forever! I don't encourage our rebellion, but I am encouraged God can use even our rebellion as an instrument of grace in the life of another. In the openness about my own rebellion (running from God), others have been touched by the grace of God. I can only imagine how many times God has used our "cumulative" rebellion over the years! We cannot lose sight of what comes next - the sea does not consume Jonah. Herein is where we find our hope - our sin may get us into some pretty wicked messes, but it need not consume us! In our rebellion, God even provides for OUR protection! Run as we might, God still watches over us! Just sayin!