Beast of Burden?

Any concern too small to be turned into a prayer is too small to be made into a burden. 

(Corrie Ten Boom)

Come to me all of you who are tired from the heavy burden you have been forced to carry. I will give you rest. (Matthew 11:28)

There are far too many burdens being carried by people today that they were never created to carry. Some are of our own making, while others are really cast upon us because someone in our life didn't do what they were supposed to, leaving us to bear something we never thought we'd be carrying. A new year is a great time to consider what it is we have been 'carrying' that perhaps wasn't intended for us to carry. God's plan from the beginning was that every 'burden' was to be 'unloaded' at the feet of Jesus - nothing being too hard for him.

What happens when we carry a burden? We all know they can make us tire easily and even make our mental capacity a little too 'crammed full' for our liking. What we may not realize is how the burden we are carrying, even the ones we know are our responsibility, is that they actually change the way we 'walk'. Consider the beast of burden known as the mule - created solely to carry burdens but doing it a bit too grudgingly at times. We've all likely seen or heard of the mule that becomes too 'dug in' that the one asking for it to move forward has a struggle on their hands. I wonder if God is asking any of us to move forward today, but the burden we are carrying is making us 'dig in deeper' in our stubbornness, refusing to move at all?

Even the beast of burden doesn't carry the burden forever. At some point, it is unloaded, perhaps to be 'reloaded' again with a new burden, but it has a period of rest from burdens. God doesn't want us to be burdened, unloaded and burdened again. He wants us to be 'unloaded' once and for all. The responsibilities we consider to be burdens in our life may just feel like a burden because we have become so accustomed to bearing up under something we weren't supposed to bear ourselves! For example, parenting may be a burden right now, but what other burdens are we carrying that are actually making us feel that way? Sometimes we need to unload at the feet of Jesus and feel what it is like to be burden-free again. Then the things we know are our responsibilities may just feel a little less like a burden and a whole lot more like a blessing. Just sayin!

No man left behind

I don’t mean that I am exactly what God wants me to be. I have not yet reached that goal. But I continue trying to reach it and make it mine. That’s what Christ Jesus wants me to do. It is the reason he made me his. Brothers and sisters, I know that I still have a long way to go. But there is one thing I do: I forget what is in the past and try as hard as I can to reach the goal before me. I keep running hard toward the finish line to get the prize that is mine because God has called me through Christ Jesus to life up there in heaven. (Philippians 3:12-14)

All of us can truthfully say that we ae not exactly what God wants us to be - we haven't fully reached that point where we have done all we should do, developed all the character traits God wants us to develop, or completely been the person he wants us to be to reach others for him. The best we can admit to being is one that is 'continuing on' - doing what we are asked to do, learning from the instruction we receive, and allowing God to use us as he sees fit in each encounter he brings our way. Life isn't perfect - neither are we!

All God expects is that we are obedient to the knowledge he brings into our lives and that we pay attention to those around us that he purposefully places in our lives. He has placed them there so he can impact their lives through ours. It may seem a bit odd that the God of the Universe would actually choose to use us human beings to do his work on this earth, but he does. We must be faithfully obedient to do as he instructs, even when it seems a bit odd or hard. God's plans don't always make sense at the beginning, but in the course of time, we see how he is working in and through us.

We all still have a long way to go - so exercise a little patience when others don't seem to be growing as we think they should, or you find yourself just a bit 'off-kilter' from time to time. The more we press forward, the further we get from our past. We don't have to pack it up and bring it along! That 'long way' we each still have to go isn't going to welcome all that baggage! A runner cannot carry a heavy pack upon his back and God calls for us to be runners, not burden-bearers! The past is behind, the present awaits, and the future is prepared. We might just be the one called to help others 'unburden' from the weight of their past sins, but it is easier to do that when we have done so ourselves. 

Maybe we are each removing one small part of that burden that belongs in our past from each other's 'pack'. It is as we let go that another may be willing to part with a piece of their burden, as well. We need to spur one another on toward the goal, with the same philosophy of the military - no man is left behind. Just sayin!

Who is actually carrying that now?

Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. (Matthew 11:28-29)

How many times do we carry burdens way too heavy and beyond our means of ever 'unloading' on our own? Examine what Jesus said - come, take, learn, and find rest. There is an 'unloading' that occurs when we come to Jesus with those things we are carrying, but first we have to come! To take we must lay down. If we are to put more 'in', we must let 'out' what is nothing more than a 'burden' we carry. A burden is anything that is borne with difficulty - there is a sense of obligation to hold onto it, nurse it along, and keep it 'well situated' in a position where it can be 'managed'. What are we 'bearing' with difficulty today? Is it really our 'burden' to carry? Should we continue to 'manage' it, barely inching along under its weight? If we ever want to be free from it, we better stop nursing it along!

In accounting terms, a burden is anything that is considered to be 'overhead' - in other words, it is 'over our heads' all the time unless we 'pay it off' entirely. For most of us, the burdens we carry today are nothing we can 'pay off' on our own. They are emotional and spiritual - things we cannot change without the help of another. We might want to be free, but we cannot figure out a way to 'unburden' the load without another's help. The truth is likely that the burden we carry today is never going to be 'gone' entirely without God's helps to 'unload' what we have packed away so carefully and tightly into the spaces of our mind and heart. It remains 'overhead' in our lives, with us constantly trying to find some means of 'paying some debt off' so we can finally be free of the 'overhead'.

To be free, we take. Seems like an oxymoron, doesn't it? A yoke means we pull together - no longer attempting to bear the burden alone. We let go of our independent struggle and bind our lives together with Christ, allowing him to shoulder the burden right there alongside of us. One day, when we least expect it, we come to discover he wears the 'lead' yoke - we no longer carry that burden - he does. Rest comes over our weary emotions, settling deep within our overworked minds. The more we let him lead, the lighter the burden becomes, until one day, we no longer feel the weight of that burden any longer. Perhaps the greatest way to 'unburden' is to 'yoke up' with Christ. Just sayin!

Flee the burden

Many Samaritans from the village believed in Jesus because the woman had said, “He told me everything I ever did!” When they came out to see him, they begged him to stay in their village. So he stayed for two days, long enough for many more to hear his message and believe. Then they said to the woman, “Now we believe, not just because of what you told us, but because we have heard him ourselves. Now we know that he is indeed the Savior of the world.” (John 4:39-42)

Many believed because of what the woman shared - others believed because of what they heard him and believed. Just imagine what would have happened if the woman had not shared what happened at the well, harboring all that she had experienced just for herself. Others who were ready and waiting to receive their Messiah might have missed the opportunity. There is something quite powerful in sharing what Jesus has done in your life, but there is something even more powerful in coming to the conclusion that you need him in spite of what you have done in your life. This woman, married five times, living out of wedlock with another, likely had a lot of shame in her life. She came alone to the well, at noonday - not first thing in the morning with the rest of the women of the township. Something 'set her apart' from her peers - we will probably not know what it was for sure, but it is likely she was not very well respected in her town. Yet, when she encounters Jesus, and he encounters her, she immediately runs back to tell everyone what she had just experienced. This is likely the 'freedom' of newfound faith!

No longer encumbered by her past, she was 'free' to share her future - a future that would be lived at the feet of Jesus, in the Kingdom of God. I think some of us take our newfound faith, packing up all the baggage of our past, and try to somehow live out this life of 'freedom' while carrying the baggage we should have left behind. All that shame, probably too great for any of us to realize, left at the well. She didn't take it all back - she fled from it! Maybe there is a lesson for each of us there - freedom from our past might just require us to 'flee from it' instead of picking it back up again. If you have ever caught an 'ugly creature' in your home, like a scorpion or spider, you don't play with it, you scoop it up in covered container, run outside, shake it out of the container as fast as possible, and then run back inside! Why? It didn't belong in the freedom of your house, and you don't want to stick around long enough to be its next victim! Our past will attempt to make us its 'victim' as long as it can, but Jesus tells us we are no longer victims of sin - we are free to live a new life in him!

We are never truly free until we leave that stuff behind. The woman left her water jar at the well - running back to the village - no longer afraid to be with them. There are 'jars' we need to leave - not just empty and carry around with us. Whatever they are, today is the day to not only leave them, but allow Jesus to break them once and for all, so they can no longer be of use in 'carrying our burdens' any longer. When he gives you that freedom, and he will give you that freedom, go and tell others what he has done. You might just see others laying down their jars of burden, fleeing far from them, and right into the arms of Jesus. Just sayin!

A laden soul

May my spoken words and unspoken thoughts be pleasing even to you, O Lord my Rock and my Redeemer. (Psalm 19:14)

John Maxwell reminds us, "People may hear your words, but they feel your attitude." What does your attitude say today? Does it reveal your tiredness or frustration? Does it shine forth with encouragement and hope? We actually 'choose' our attitude, but we would like to blame our attitude on others or circumstances. If it is bad, we blame it on the bad stuff happening in our lives. If it is jubilant, we attribute it to the good stuff going on around us. Spoken words reveal much, but our unspoken thoughts often come across in our attitude. Don't believe me? When was the last time you looked at your posture when you are in the depths of thought about something that is giving you a bit of trouble? How is your posture when you are well-rested versus weary from a lack of the proper rest? Your posture might just reveal a bit of that 'inner thought' attitude you have going on right now!

When both our spoken words and unspoken thoughts are influenced by the Spirit of God within us, we are more likely to reveal an attitude of grace, love, and forgiveness. Those three things go a long, long way toward elevating one's attitude! They can unburden even the most laden of souls. Holding onto a grudge - the feeling that you have been wronged - will just lead to a 'laden attitude'. Your inner thoughts will betray your outward facade. What you believe about the other person will eventually come through loud and clear even when you don't say a thing! Love generously, forgive freely, and give grace where it is least deserved - then see what that does to lighten your burden. 

In closing today, I'd like us to each answer the questions posed by clergyman Henri Nouwen: "Did I offer peace today? Did I bring a smile to someone's face? Did I say words of healing? Did I let go of my anger and resentment? Did I forgive? Did I love? These are the real questions. I must trust that the little bit of love that I sow now will bear many fruits, here in this world and the life to come." What fruit will you bear today isn't just revealed in your spoken words - the real fruit may be hidden in the recesses of your unspoken thoughts. Let the Spirit of God lead you into those recesses today - bringing to light any area where you are holding onto things that only serve to burden your soul. Then let go. Just sayin!

Share that burden

Dear brothers, if a Christian is overcome by some sin, you who are godly should gently and humbly help him back onto the right path, remembering that next time it might be one of you who is in the wrong. Share each other’s troubles and problems, and so obey our Lord’s command. If anyone thinks he is too great to stoop to this, he is fooling himself. He is really a nobody. (Romans 6:1-3)

It is easy to share another's happiness or celebration, isn't it? It isn't as easy to share their troubles or problems. A gentle and humble response to another's shortcomings is just as hard, isn't it? The spirit of man can be downcast and burdened beyond one's ability to stand against. The heart becomes darkened by steps taken in the wrong direction and the spirit can be weighed down by woes beyond one's own control. We are told to come alongside another who is overcome and lighten their burden - if even in the slightest sense. It isn't so we will receive glory and praise, but because it is the right 'action' of a believer's heart toward another who is caught up in sin, weighed down under burdens, or in difficult circumstances. Why? It is what Jesus would do and he lives in you!

Do we have to assume the troubles of the other individual in order to fulfill this command? Not at all - we just need to help them as God leads us. The one burdened is attempting to carry much more than they can handle alone - in whatever form that burden may manifest. Burdens come in the form of anxieties, trials, mishaps, shifting circumstances, downturns, and even hindrances. How can we make a difference in these? Perhaps we can pray - that is a good start, but have you ever heard that sometimes we need to 'put feet to our prayers'? There might be some 'action' God asks of us in the form of easing that burden. When we 'act upon' that urging of the Spirit of God within, we are beginning to share that burden just a bit. Does it become 'our' burden to bear? No, it is still theirs, but they aren't bearing it alone any longer - they have Jesus and us on their side!

Does sharing another's burdens always make 'sense'? Not always - in fact, there are times when we have similar anxieties and just have no idea how 'sharing' those can actually help either one of us. As we open up to each other, sharing those burdens and missteps, we can begin to see we are not in the challenge alone. We might know we have Jesus on our side, but to realize someone else shares similar circumstances and is struggling in similar ways, we can begin to pray and care for each other. Somehow that lightens our burden - to not just pray for our own issues, but to begin to pray for someone else's burden. We might not feel the lifting of our burden immediately, but the more we come alongside each other, the more we will feel our burden lifting. I don't know how Jesus does that, but he somehow eases our burden as we begin to be there for one another. So, be open to share a burden as God leads. When you choose to serve one another as God leads, you are choosing to serve Jesus. Just sayin!

Carry me

Back a number of years ago, I undertook one of the toughest hiking experiences I have ever done. It was a 13-mile hike down into the Grand Canyon. The trails were steep, to stay the least, and most were quite narrow as we made the descent downward, so I knew the ascent up was gonna be a 'bugger'. I was a lot younger then, and a whole lot dumber! We packed full packs, small tent, and sleeping bags, along with lots of water because there was no fresh water at the base of the canyon. On the way down, I was too 'prideful' to admit that pack was heavier than heavy! I just took the weight upon my shoulders and plodded along. It was exhausting and my body felt the toll at the bottom of that trail. As we settled in for the night, I remembered looking over at those who were along on the hike and declaring firmly that I was hiring a mule to take my pack up to the top on the way out! Why? I learned there is value in having someone else bear my burdens at times!

Carry one another’s heavy loads. If you do, you will fulfill the law of Christ. (Galatians 6:2)

I lost both toenails on my big toes just because the steepness of the descent down into that canyon, combined with significant weight I was carrying on my back as I made that descent caused significant pressure to build up as I repeatedly dug my feet in for footing. It became painfully obvious to me that I was not a 'fit' pack mule! There are a whole lot of burdens we carry in life that are just way too heavy for us to carry and/or the course upon which we are carrying them is very challenging for us. In those times, are we going to be found too 'stubborn' to admit we need help in carrying them? If you were like me all those years ago, you might be answering in the affirmative to the 'stubbornness' part! Do you know what I realized - I was as stubborn as a mule and acting like one, too!

In the last days of mom's life, I found the burden significant. The work of keeping her clean, dry, comfortable, and 'pampered' in those last couple of weeks was astronomically hard. As she became bedridden those last couple of weeks, I needed help. Do you know what my first inclination was? To just buck up and get it done. It wasn't to admit I needed the help. All these years later, I was still kind 'mulish' in my attitude. Those thoughts of "I can manage this" didn't last more than about an hour. God's still small voice kept prompting me to lay that burden down and let others help me carry it. My sister came alongside for a week, my BFF was there that last week, as was my daughter. They all helped me bathe her, change her linens, keep her dry and smelling fresh, and even helped me wash her hair.

What I appreciated most was the time it left me to just sit with her and enjoy her. I read scripture to her, sang her some songs, and just 'kept company' with mom. If I hadn't of asked for the help with those harder tasks, I wouldn't have had that time to do that. There are times when we just need to lay down our stubbornness and admit we aren't going to be able to carry our burdens alone. The sooner we realize that, the better off we will be! We aren't meant to be 'pack mules' in life - so we need to stop acting like we are! Just sayin!

How heavy did you say that was?

Since we have such a huge crowd of men of faith watching us from the grandstands, let us strip off anything that slows us down or holds us back, and especially those sins that wrap themselves so tightly around our feet and trip us up; and let us run with patience the particular race that God has set before us. (Hebrews 12:1 TLB)

What slows you down? As each decade passes, I find the things that once couldn't stop me are more or less obstacles in my path these days. My strength is still good, but it isn't what it was in my twenties or thirties! I didn't used to have an artificial knee and running was no problem for me, but running with 'artificial parts' doesn't exactly make me the Bionic Woman! My grandson took a hike this weekend with his youth group and before he went he packed his 'survival gear'. It was as though he thought he'd have to keep the whole group hydrated, first aid rendered, and possibly navigate the open spaces of the mountains around us with his trusty compass. His pack was full to the brim! Before he left, my daughter had to help him 'pare down' a little bit of the stuff because he'd have worn himself out on the six mile jaunt with as much as he was carrying. He didn't like it, but his mom was right in doing so. In life, we sometimes carry way too much - things that eventually will hold us back if not let go of early on. 

Stripped down we move at a much different pace than we do when we are all burdened down with things we don't really need to carry. If you have ever tripped on your own shoelaces, you know how easily you were 'entangled' in what was really meant to be a thing of help to you in life. Shoelaces were designed to keep our shoes on our feet so we could move with ease and not have excessive movement of our shoe as we did. They were designed for our comfort. Untied they become a source of entanglement - what once was designed for our good becomes an object of frustration and harm to us. We often don't realize how quickly the things that can start out as "good" in our lives can easily turn into things that are more of a burden or entanglement to us. When there is no evaluation of how well those things are 'maintained' or 'monitored' for effect in our lives, we might just find them becoming a burden down the road.

We run best when unburdened. Whatever is burdening you today, it is time to figure out how to 'strip down' from that stuff. Why? It will become your entanglement over the long run and you will trip and fall way too often for your liking! Ask yourself if whatever it is was really meant to be something helpful in your life and now you have allowed it to consume you. If so, then maybe it is time to pull back from that which demands so much of your attention that you miss out on what is happening around you. You don't have to 'get free' all by yourself, you know? You have God's help and the help of others you can 'tap into', but to do so, you must first recognize those things need to change - they need to go. Look down at an untied shoelace or recognize the looseness of the fit of your shoe and you usually stoop down to 'put things in order again', right? Look over your life to see what has become your 'tripping point' and you should be just as willing to 'put things in order again' in those areas, as well. If you find your 'want to' doesn't match your 'need to', then just ask for God's help. Specifically ask him to send you the right person to help you walk that out together - he knows who that should be. We don't have to get unburdened alone. Sometimes we need someone else to point out just how heavy that burden is we are carrying! Just sayin!

Take this

Help each other with your troubles. When you do this, you are obeying the law of Christ. (Galatians 6:2 ERV)

In other translations you might find "burdens" in place of troubles. Either way, we are to be there for each other - regardless of the burden or the thing that troubles our mind, soul, or spirit. A burden is something that is "carried" - it can be a load, but it can also be what some feel in the sense of what is described as the "onus" to do something or be a certain way. The task some of us are trying to do is more of an obligation than a desire. This may be because someone imposed it upon us, or we committed to something we later would come to regret. The "burdens" we carry can be quite hard for us and God's plan isn't that we remain "under" those burdens - but that we help each other out with them.

Sometimes the greatest "help" we can be is to set someone free from the sense of "obligation" they feel toward something they have committed to do, but which they neither has the joy in doing, or which has become way to hard for them to continue to do any longer. It may be we are helping that individual to realize something much more fulfilling in the long run. That release can turn the tides for the individual who is only "halfway" doing whatever it is they are obliged to do anyway. It can set them free to do something "all the way" with gusto, enjoyment, and a deep sense of fulfillment.

At other times, we need to come alongside an individual burdened down by life and ease the load a little. It doesn't even always have to be that we take the full load, or that we carry it long. Even the slightest relief can make the world of difference in their lives. It renews them enough to continue on. It may be we need to carry that load a little bit longer than we might have imagined, but if we do so with an open heart and in the mercies of God's grace, we find the other individual's need is met and our lives are enriched. 

This is God's plan for "church" - that we come together, share the load, and live in such a way that we are sensitive to the needs of those around us. We open up to the possibility of becoming "burden bearers" for just a little while and in turn, we open up to some of the greatest blessings we could ever imagine. What are those blessings? Well, one would be the cementing of lasting relationship - for each time we open up to bear the burden of another, we are working toward creating bonds that will take us through rough places and deep waters. Just sayin!

Not just another blister

Lee Iacocca once said, "Trouble shared is trouble halved."  I have to say "half of the trouble" is still way more trouble than I really want to bear at any given moment!  It is a nice sentiment to "share" my trouble so I am now only dealing with half the trouble, but it isn't the answer we really need or want. We most likely want someone to carry ALL the trouble away - like the old commercial said, "Calgon, take me away!" We want to "deal" with the trouble by turning it over to someone else entirely, thereby putting the burden to "deal with it" squarely on their shoulders!  Wilma Rudolph said, "When the sun is shining, I can do anything; no mountain is too high, no trouble too difficult to overcome."  I think the truth is really when the SON is shining deeply in our lives, given the right place of priority in our hearts, we CAN do anything - no mountain is grander than we can scale together, no trouble bigger than his ability to overcome.

Let every king on earth bow down before him and every nation be in his service. For he will rescue the needy when they ask for help!  He will save the burdened and come to the aid of those who have no other help.  He offers compassion to the weak and the poor; he will help and protect the lives of the needy!  (Psalm 72:11-13 VOICE)

I like what Teddy Roosevelt said:  "If you could kick the person on the pants responsible for most of your trouble, you wouldn't sit for a month."  There is quite a bit of truth to that one, my friends!  Our "trouble" isn't usually someone else's doing - it is rooted in something we were or weren't doing which brought upon us the trouble we are experiencing today.  Yes, there are times when trouble comes our way without us ever doing anything to "get ourselves into that trouble", but in most cases, we are walking right into it without even noticing!

As we make choices in life, decisions which sometimes err on the side of not being the best to those which clearly land in the court of "right on", we don't do it in a vacuum.  We impact the lives of many around us by each and every choice we make and those choices sometimes create a bit more trouble for the "other guy" than we'd like to admit.  The truth is that we ALL stand in need at one time or another - either because of the choices we made, or the impact of the choices of another.  We cannot escape "need" - it is part of living. The issue comes in admitting we "need" anyone else to deal with the issue at hand!

Pride often keeps us from "handing off" those things in life we weren't meant to bear alone.  We try and try again because we just cannot admit to our need.  The only problem with this stubborn determination to bear things all on our own is that we often don't realize the increasing pressure of the burden until it has done damage.  I wore sandals one time to walk around Disneyland.  Now, they were good sandals - the kind you can hike in.  I felt a little rubbing across the top of my foot as we walked and walked from one attraction to another.  I knew there was going to be a blister.  What I wasn't willing to do was admit I needed to shed those sandals!  So, by the end of the day, I was left not with a blister, but a crater of sorts in the top of my foot!

Take a lesson here - the more we "bear with" whatever it is giving us the "rub" in life, the more we are likely to be impacted by that thing!  There are things we just need to "shed" - to be rid of - in order to be free from their further impacting our lives in a negative way.  Those are things we likely call "burdensome" things.  It may be a task way too large for us to handle alone, or the mounting financial troubles we are experiencing.  It doesn't matter what it is, the way out from under the burden is not to "half" it!  It is to squarely rid ourselves of it by placing it on the shoulders of the one who wants to bear it on HIS shoulders.  I haven't worn those sandals again - but I still bear a faint mark as a reminder of wearing them way too long in the first place! Think on that one a little and you will realize we ALL bear things beyond the point we really should.  Just sayin!

Adjusting under the weight

Burden:  That which is born with difficulty or obligation; to load so heavily as to trouble the one who carries the weight.   We all carry some type of burden - but some of us carry a load too great for us to bear and are crumbling under the weight of that burden.  When I say we all carry some type of burden, I refer to the "burdens" we carry each day such as getting the kids to school on time, being productive at work, and ensuring their are clean underwear in the drawer each week.  These are "minor" burdens compared to the weight of sin, depression, anxiety, and the like.  They are eventually "relieved" by dropping the kids at the doorstep of the school, or completing that task you were given. There is an end point we can see.  The other burdens I speak of are those without an end point - or at least it seems that way.  Now, I know your laundry can pile up and up, making it look like there is no end to the burden, but trust me - wash long enough and fold for a few hours - it will come to an end!  These "temporary" burdens all have something in common - they come back time and time again, but they are kind of "easily unloaded" just by reaching that "end point".  The burden of sin has no end point within our own effort - there is no lightening of the load we bear just because we do some magical incantation or create an illusion in our minds of things being different.  The burden of sin remains until one is unburdened from its weight - and that unburdening is not possible with someone to help us "unload" it.

“Come to me all of you who are tired from the heavy burden you have been forced to carry. I will give you rest. Accept my teaching. Learn from me. I am gentle and humble in spirit. And you will be able to get some rest. Yes, the teaching that I ask you to accept is easy. The load I give you to carry is light.” (Matthew 11:28-30 ERV)

To unburden from the load of sin, one must first come to the realization they are carrying a load they don't want to carry any longer.  It isn't until we realize the weight of the burden we have been carrying that we begin to chafe under the weight of it.  Sure it fatigues us, but we don't really think much about it because we haven't really come to the place of recognizing we are actually carrying that weight.  Sin has a way of duping us into carrying the weight of it a lot longer than we might imagine.  There is this little thing called "pride" which often gets in the way of us admitting we don't want to carry the weight of sin's burden any longer - so we just "bear up" under the weight of it, allowing it to heap on more weight called "guilt" until we can barely move because of the tremendous "burden" we are carrying.  At the point we recognize we want to be out from under the weight of the sin and guilt, we are right in the place we need to be in order to have that weight removed.

Any time we get heaps and heaps of guilt which we are carrying around with us, we are carrying a burden too great for us to bear.  Whenever you carry a weight too great for you to bear in a physical sense, your body does not do well with that weight.  It wears out your knees, puts strain upon your back, pulls at your muscles, and eventually it slows you down.  Lose even some of the burden and you will begin to sense a new "lightness" in your step, muscles will heal, and you will begin to see yourself moving at a renewed pace.  The same is true of the unloading of a spiritual burden - there is a lightness which comes, returning a sense of vigor and vitality to our walk again.  One of the unrealized burden multipliers which guilt produces is that of a lack of rest.  This is probably why Jesus says we come to him to be "unburdened" from our load of sin and then he gives us rest in return.  Guilt removed will bring a peace to our souls and peace in turn brings about rest and renewal.

As Jesus points out, there is but one place of unburdening - it is at his feet.  We come to him and he begins the work of removing the load we weren't meant to bear - the load we have been trying to bear up under without relief and with continued strain.  It isn't our work which unburdens us - it is his.  It is like us taking a pack mule into a town, then seeing the townsman unload all the weight heaped upon the back of that pack mule.  We navigated it safely to the destination, but another does the work of setting the mule free from its load. We come to Jesus - he does the work of unloading the sin and guilt we have been traveling with for a long, long time.  If you have ever taken a backpacking trip, you might have sense something which I think the pack mule actually senses at that moment when the last burden is removed from his back.  

On that backpacking trip, as we lower our backpack to the ground, allowing our bodies to adjust to the lack of extra weight which have been on it for the journey to our destination, we almost feel a sense of euphoria and lightness which makes us a little "off-balance" for a moment or two.  Why?  We made adjustments in order to carry the weight.  It is like that with sin and guilt - we are constantly making adjustments in order to carry even more of it!  We heap it on and on, making this adjustment and that, allowing our lives to take on the weight.  In the end, we forget what it was like to walk without the burden. When we are finally without the weight - we need to make some adjustments again in order to learn to walk without that weight!  Jesus says we need to accept his teaching and learn from him - this is how we adjust to being without the weight of sin and guilt in our lives.  It is also how we adjust to not taking up that burden again!  Just sayin!

Considering the load

Have you ever felt like you are at the end of your rope - just ready to throw in the towel and call it quits?  In those moments, isn't it so easy to just accuse God of things like "ignoring us" or "not paying attention to our needs"?  We somehow equate things "not going our way" as God holding out on us, or just plain not giving a hoot about how we are fairing in the process.  In fact, we might even utter words which resemble these of our psalmist:  "I've looked at the back of your head long enough!"  It is easy to settle into the "mully-grubs" when things are not exactly as we might have liked for them to be in our lives, but it is quite another thing to "blame" God for getting or putting us there!  

Long enough, God—you’ve ignored me long enough.  I’ve looked at the back of your head long enough. Long enough I’ve carried this ton of trouble, lived with a stomach full of pain.  Long enough my arrogant enemies have looked down their noses at me.  Take a good look at me, God, my God; I want to look life in the eye, so no enemy can get the best of me or laugh when I fall on my face.  I’ve thrown myself headlong into your arms—I’m celebrating your rescue.  I’m singing at the top of my lungs, I’m so full of answered prayers.  (Psalm 13 MSG)

Perhaps, like David, we cry out:  "Hey!  God!  You've ignored me long enough!" Isn't it just like us to consider our circumstances, then point blame for the delay right back at God!  Since the beginning of time, we have been trying to "pin the blame" on someone (anyone) other than ourselves.  If we stop long enough to consider the meaning of the delay, we might just find God at work, just quietly and behind the scenes.  It is quite natural to feel like God has turned his back on us when there is some delay in realizing relief from stress or torment.  After all, we equate his loving-kindness and mercy with us being delivered from stuff which could do us harm, don't we?  God doesn't always get us into the middle of the muddle we are in, but he walks right alongside us where we find ourselves.  He isn't there uttering words such as "I told you so" - in fact, he is often silent, allowing us time to realize the folly of our own ways.

David says it well - it has been long enough, God.  God gives us just "long enough" to realize our independent choices, the folly of our ways, and the truth about who really is to "blame" for the mess we are in.  The stomach full of pain and the ton of troubles we carry are not a result of God's actions, but usually of ours.  Whenever we veer off-course - we can count on "bearing" things we really weren't meant to bear in the first place.  We face the arrogance of our enemies because we have come into the place of seeing them face-to-face - not because God brought us there, but because our choices led to this encounter.  God's "long enough" may seem like a little "too long" for most of us.  In fact, we want out immediately, forgetting how "long" it took for us to get into this mess in the first place.  Remember this - the road out is no different than the road in!

In realizing that "our lot" is misplaced - not really fully placed in God's hands - we take the first steps to having God "bear" our lot.  As long as we bear it, we endure the torture of carrying it, bearing up under its pressures.  As soon as we recognize it is misplaced in our hands, moving to transition it to God's hands, we recognize the release of having him carry us through.  I don't know about you, but whenever I have tried to carry things of my own doing, they get a little heavy and awkward to bear.  When God carries those things I find I have amassed without even knowing, my load is lifted, my steps are freer, and my ability to see his actions in my life are clearer.  The load I carry keeps me stooped forward, facing downward, seeing nothing but the path in front of me.  As soon as he lifts the load, I am able to straighten up, seeing him face-to-face again.

Instead of cursing the "load" you bear - consider it.  In considering it, attempt to recognize when and where you actually "picked it up".  You see, in recognizing where it was we began to carry what we were not designed to carry, we also recognize the turning point which will get us out from under this "load" which burdens our souls.  Just sayin!

Pack smart!

Do you ever just feel like you need to be carried along a little?  You know, like when the burdens get so "huge" you cannot seem to see around them, much less get out from under them.  I guess we all get to this point once in a while, but the important thing is that we learn to not make this a way of life!  By definition, a burden is something which is carried with some difficulty - it has become a "load" we bear, a sense of obligation to hold on tightly and not let go.  That said, I have to ask - what are you holding onto so tightly which keeps your hands, minds, and soul so occupied that you no longer can reach out to take the hand of Jesus?

Blessed be the Lord—day after day he carries us along.  (Psalm 68:19 MSG)

If we really want to understand the burdens which get us "overloaded", we first have to learn how it is we "pack the pack".  In the military, they taught us to "pack smart", but also to pack a whole lot in a little space.  For example, they gave us freeze-dried meals - they weighed less, took up less space, and still provided us with nourishment.  All we needed was the water to "reconstitute" them later on.  If we didn't have the clean water, they were kind enough to provide us with a tiny bottle of "water-purification" pills!  The techniques for packing included rolling things tightly into small bundles, packing every square inch of our pack so strategically we could fit a week's worth of stuff in there with room to spare!  The most important stuff went on the top - like our socks, compass, and the like.  Socks?  Yep, because wet feet became a risk to us, so changing our socks frequently prevented "foot rot".

I think some of us have learned to pack our lives so "strategically full" that we no longer have any room for the important stuff!  We couldn't fit a "change of socks" in there if our lives depended on it!  We pack away everything from thoughts to attitudes, dreams to disappointments, harm to failure - you name it - we have it packed tight!  What often becomes the case is our failure to remember all the stuff we have packed in there!  When I first started traveling, I packed so much stuff - just in case.  As I have become a more seasoned traveler, I have learned you can make do with a whole lot less and to pack stuff which serves a "dual" purpose.  Why?  It makes the load lighter, and it gets packed / unpacked quicker!  

The same is true in our spiritual and emotional lives - we have to learn to pack smart - being sure what it is we pack serves a purpose and is not really just extra weight we are carrying around.  Have you ever held onto something thinking you might just use it some day down the road?  I think we do that spiritually at times - we hold onto stuff God gives us for our use TODAY, just in case we need it down the road.  God's mercies are new EVERY morning - so if he gives you something today in the form of a word to hold onto, or a truth which can begin the process of setting things in right order in your life, why hold onto it for "future use"?  We also do this with emotional "baggage", as well.   We tuck away certain things, not so much because they are good stuff to have hanging around, but because we may "need to use that some day".  Usually we need to "use it" when we argue, become critical, or just plain feel like tearing another apart.  Emotional stuff tucked away is dangerous - it gets lost in the "pack" and we seldom realize just how much "stuff" is in there.

These kinds of things become burdens for us to bear.  When we don't use the truth God gives us today to help with today's challenges, we just put them alongside the burden we are already carrying and this only serves to increase the weight of what we are carrying.  Now, we carry the challenge AND the knowledge we haven't used what God gave us, leading us to feel a little guilty for not using what he gives.  When we hold onto the emotional stuff, it is like wearing dirty, smelly, wet socks - we get "foot rot".  If you have ever smelled it, you'd know it is not something you want!  Try walking well when your feet are being destroyed by some fungal infection!  It is not all that easy!  Maybe this is why God wants us to learn to "pack smart" - so we don't carry around unnecessary burdens which limit our ability to actually hold onto the one thing he wants us to hold onto - his hand!  Just sayin!

Obligated to carry this

Have you ever heard the little saying:  Everyone comes with baggage - you just need to hook up with someone who is willing to help you unpack it?  I don't know if this is the exact saying, but you can get the idea.  We ALL have baggage!  We all have burdens we carry - some quite well-packed and others just barely hanging on!  We all handle our burdens differently - some bear them in silence while others ramble incessantly about the difficulties in life.  Here's what I know:  Whenever a burden wants to attach itself to our shoulders, we need to refuse to carry it!

God saves those who suffer by using their suffering.  He uses their troubles to speak in a way that makes them listen.  In fact, God wants to help you out of your troubles.  He wants to take away your burdens that are crushing you.   He wants to load your table with plenty of food.  (Job 36:15-16 ERV)

Job has been right smack in the middle of being "saddled" with some burdens beyond his physical, mental, or emotional ability to handle on his own.  In the midst of this, he has found himself complaining, withdrawing, and acting out. His spouse, friends, and even those who just know him in the community, all have seen the evidence of his burdens.  Some commiserate with him - others are sure he has done something wrong - still others just shake their head, unable to figure out what went wrong!  The range of emotions from those "saddled" with the burden is as wide as you might imagine - the response to the burden ranges from anger to withdrawal.  

Elihu is speaking the words above - after listening to Job and his other three friends go over all the possible scenarios for the cause of Job's burden.  His other three friends all have a "take" on Job's circumstances which comes from the perspective of God "judging" Job for something.  In other words, they say the "bad stuff" that is happening is just because Job must have done something wrong or have some unrighteousness in him which caused God to "judge" him.  Elihu has probably been listening to these men "advise" Job, and he interjects his thoughts in this one chapter of the book of Job.  We don't know much about Elihu, but his message might just help us in getting our own "baggage" unpacked!

Elihu begins with the idea of "suffering" (the burden Job bears) being "allowed" by God.  Now, for ages there have been those who ask, "How can a good God allow bad stuff to happen?"  The truth is, we live in a sinful world, with all men having a sin nature - so bad stuff happens, and sometimes to good people!  Elihu simply puts it out there that God might have a purpose in the suffering (the burden).  Most importantly, he gives Job (and his three companions) a little food for thought.  He lays out the possibility that the suffering one is under today might just be "designed" (allowed) in order to drive one to a greater dependence upon God.  In the end, Elihu proposes that man will be stronger and with better "moral" footing.  I think he might have been saying God wants to bring us closer, make us stronger, and fill us deeper with is love!

By definition, a burden is that which is "borne" with some difficulty, almost as though there was an "obligation" to carry it.  This so totally hits the nail on the head as it applies to us "carrying our own burdens", doesn't it?  We take them on as though we had some "obligation" to carry them!  Then we complain all the while we are "carrying" them!  Silly, silly us!  I don't know about you, but when someone wants to "saddle" me with something I don't want to carry, I resist it!  Sometimes my "resistance" can be interpreted as "complaining".  In fact, it is just that!  Yet, in my "complaining" sometimes I find the discovery of the truth of how this burden came to be "mine"!  I see just where I allowed myself to be "saddled" and where the load shifted from the other person to me!

In a study a couple of days ago, we looked at the concept of "complaining if you must", but learning to use your "heart-talk" to really connect with God on the matters which burden you.  Here's where the difference is between what Job's three other friends were trying to do and what Elihu was saying.  We may complain, but if we aren't taking our complaint to God for his perspective, we aren't "complaining" to the one who can do anything to help us "unpack" our burdens.  Elihu says God often uses our burdens to help us develop "listening" ears.  Herein lies the truth - we often don't listen until we realize the weight of our burden is greater than we can handle!

As we further "unpack" this passage, we see Elihu instructs Job to trust God to "unburden" him.  In fact, he reminds Job that God desires to "help you" come out from the weight of the burden.  This is often where we mess things up - we try to unpack our own burdens, only finding we are incapable of doing so with any lasting success.  You see, we "unpack" the "saddle", but the saddle remains!  Only God removes the "burden" AND the "saddle".  So, instead of being "saddled" with things we feel "obligated" to carry, doesn't it make sense to allow God to do a little "unpacking" in your life?  Just askin?

Too much baggage to carry!

Do you know what it means to be tyrannized by something or someone?  It means to exercise absolute or control over someone - so much so that they are cruelly oppressed.  Peter directs us today to thinking of our old way of living as "tyrannizing" our new way of walking with Christ.  In fact, he says it is a matter of our old way of living always oppressing us by demanding what it wants.


Since Jesus went through everything you're going through and more, learn to think like him. Think of your sufferings as a weaning from that old sinful habit of always expecting to get your own way. Then you'll be able to live out your days free to pursue what God wants instead of being tyrannized by what you want.  (1 Peter 4:1-2 The Message)


Something which is oppressive is first of all way too harsh.  Think of what Peter is saying - our old way of living (self-directed, self-demanding) is way too harsh in the demands which are made.  I have come to recognize there is no "happy medium" with my old way of living before Christ - my "self-man" demanded its own way so much more than I'd probably like to acknowledge.  The choices I made were a direct result of living under a "tyrant" - my self-man!


Secondly, something which is oppressive is burdensome - overly so, in fact.  There is something of a "weight" attached to each of the demands of our "self-man" which we may not recognize.  The more we respond to the demands of our "tyrant" self, the "weightier" the burden is to always keep up with these demands.  Talk to anyone with an addiction and they will be the first to tell you about the "weight" of their burden!


So, Peter sets out to instruct us on what it is God uses to help us be "unburdened" from the oppressiveness of our self-man.  Key to being unburdened is this idea of changing the way we think.  He says we need to learn to think like Christ.  Easier said than done, right?  Have you ever tried to change your mind once you had it made up to do something?  It is harder than we imagined.  


Why is this the case?  Our thoughts are "instigators" of action.  As a result, once the thought is "burned into" our brains - actions come more out of habit than as a course of purposeful thought.  God wired us this way so we would not have to always be "consciously" thinking of the stuff which should come naturally to us - such as brushing our teeth or walking.  If we constantly had to think about putting one foot in front of the other, we'd never enjoy the journey!


Since God wired us for "habit", why is it he did not wire us for good habits alone and make it almost impossible for us to form bad habits?  This brings us to the point of "will" - God wanted us to love and serve him not out of mere "habit", but by purposeful pursuit.  He wants a people who "actively choose" to follow him - even if it is a struggle between the "self-man" and the "new man".  We determine our allegiance through this "purposeful struggle".  


I am not saying our pursuit of God's best in our lives can never become "habit", but every habit begins with purposeful choice - thought.  Therefore, to get out from the tyrannical rule of our self-man, we need to make purposeful choices to no longer allow our self-man to put on the weighty burdens of guilt, shame, and excess baggage it so desires us to carry!  The first step to being out from under the weight of our burden it to stop picking up anymore baggage!


I think Peter might have been trying to tell us there will be times when God "plans" our unburdening.  In these times, he directs our course so we will come face-to-face with our "load" and desire to be "out from under it".  Peter refers to these times as "suffering".  Regardless of how we view them, they are designed for our good, not for further "weight" in our lives.  In fact, in these times, God's plan is for us to have less weight!


Remembering the action begins with a thought, Peter directs us to be conscious of our thought.  To learn to think like Christ takes a lot of work up front.  We have to redirect our thoughts a whole lot in the beginning, until they actually become more natural or "habit" later on.  In the end, our "new habit" of thinking "right" takes the place of the old way of thinking.  In turn, we leave behind some of the baggage of the past.  We are out from the weight of our self-man's demands.  This is a good place to be.


Most of us will not live long under the tyranny of another - we work our way to a place of escape, don't we?  Now, why is it we struggle so much with getting out from under the control of our self-man?  Maybe we have not come to the place of recognizing just how much of a tyrant it is!  Once we do, we want nothing more than to be free of the unjust rule of such an evil task-master!  So, begin with the knowledge of the weight existing.  Then ask God to trace the weight back to the place you actually picked it up - taking it on as emotional, spiritual, or relational baggage.  This is the place where we can usually identify the "thought" behind ever picking up the "baggage" in the first place.  If it doesn't come easily, just keep asking God to reveal the "thought" behind the baggage.  He will be faithful to reveal it.  Once revealed, you are at a place to begin to "change" the thought which will begin a path of "unburdening".  


Just remember this - baggage is always baggage when it is packed and carried.  It is nothing more than an empty shell when it is finally unpacked - and this is what God will help us to do!

Armloads of Nothing!

We all love a bargain!  Whenever we come across the item marked down to 90% of its original price - don't we squeal with delight?  Oh come on...if you don't do it outwardly, you are dancing on the inside!!!  Bargains are awesome.  The problem is - some "bargains" are merely "made up" to appear as bargains!


^17-18 Don't for a minute envy careless rebels; soak yourself in the Fear-of-God — that's where your future lies. Then you won't be left with an armload of nothing. (Proverbs 23:17-18 The Message)


A "bargain" which is really not a "bargain" is like loading ourselves up with "armloads of nothing". We find we have been "sucked into" the frenzy of believing the "false claims" of the things we loaded ourselves down with.  Don't miss it - we load ourselves up with all kinds of supposedly "good things" in our lives - but we do it without truly thinking (in a frenzy).


We have a natural "bent" of comparing ourselves to others.  We see another walk past us and in an instant, our minds go into the "processing mode" of analyzing how they are dressed, how their hair style fits their "look", and maybe even evaluating their other physical attributes (such as fat/skinny, tall/short, blemishes/perfect skin).  In one quick glance, we form all kinds of opinions.  It is like we have one of those infrared scanner devices in our mind's eye, passing each "subject" of our view over it, registering the "coded" information we store in our brains, and then coming to a conclusion just as quickly.


The danger lies in the immediacy of how quickly we jump from our own place of contentment to envying others who "pass our scanners" with the "appearance" of having it all together!  You know, if you have ever seen me on a Sunday morning, you might even have come to this very conclusion about me!  The conclusion which says, "There goes someone who has it all together." Ummm...I hate to burst your impression of me, but I do NOT have it all together.  I struggle with judging others, involving myself in conversations which would be better off not said, and being careless in so many choices, just to name a few!  


None of us is above envying the carelessness of those who seem to have life by the horns - living by their own might.  We just naturally jump to the conclusion they must "have it all together".  The cold reality is those very individuals we envy are probably struggling terribly just beneath the surface!   One who is without Christ is without hope.  Although they may possess every physical attribute man considers worth having, they lack the one which assures them lasting peace, unending joy, and constantly renewed faith in hard times.  


Soak yourself in God - wise words indeed.  Why?  Simply stated - one without Christ has no real hope for the future.  Theirs is a life of "today" without any real sense of what tomorrow will bring.  One who rightly pursues Christ as the center of their life will not always what circumstances tomorrow will bring, but they will know who holds them close as they venture into each new day.


I wonder how many times we senselessly pursue armloads of nothing.  If our arms are so packed with "nothing", when Jesus offers us "something", we have little room to accept his greater gift.  It is only as we lay down the armloads of nothing that we are able to embrace the things of greatest worth which Christ desires to bestow upon us.  It is not in how "full" our arms are that we "judge" the greatness of an individual - it is the "load" those arms carry!  Christ told us his "load" was light, unlike the armloads we amass in our frenzy of envy!  


One more thought - the armloads the careless rebels amass are acquired in haste.  The armloads of blessing God gives are acquired in moments of stillness.  Sometimes the greatest "load" we carry is the peace of having "offloaded" a burden we were never meant to carry in the first place!

Creating freshness

If we find ourselves too busy for our neighbor's burden then we are too busy!  If we find ourselves too interested in our own issues so as to miss the pressing needs of another, we are too disinterested in those God places in our lives!  Paul takes us to the place of "testing" the reality of "living what we preach" today in our passage:

^1-3 Live creatively, friends. If someone falls into sin, forgivingly restore him, saving your critical comments for yourself. You might be needing forgiveness before the day's out. Stoop down and reach out to those who are oppressed. Share their burdens, and so complete Christ's law. If you think you are too good for that, you are badly deceived.

(Galations 6:1-3 The Message)

The idea of "sharing burdens" seems like a term we have utilized in Christian circles for as long as I can remember.  It is usually associated with pastoral admonishments to engage in service, being available to what God urges us to do, and to come alongside one who is hurting.  

Paul starts with the idea of living "creatively" - the exact opposite of just "existing" in life.  He has told us to live free and animated, allowing God's Spirit to indwell us.  Now he points us to the outcome of living in freedom and allowing the Spirit of God to be the animating factor in our lives - creativity!  Don't wig out on me - this is more than being able to decorate a room with flare, or make beautiful greeting cards from paper and ribbon. 

He is likely speaking of the ability to transcend our traditional ideas of how life should "happen".  The ideas, rules, patterns, and relationships we have maintained may need to "shift" in order to allow the freshness of God's Spirit to be at work within.  In fact, God's Spirit is at work helping us form new ideas - seeing today's challenges with new eyes.  We learn to interpret life with a sense of God's imagination - rather than through the filters of our oppressed perception.

1.  Embrace the work of the Spirit in your life - really allowing him to begin to influence your thoughts - thus impacting your actions!

2.  Encounter life with new vitality - tapping deeply into the energies of the Spirit of God who indwells you in order to face the challenges today brings.

3.  Engage in today's challenges - even forgiving one who needs to be forgiven, or reaching out to help one buried under their own burdens - the life you change may very well be your own.  Engaging IN life is more rewarding than merely being an observer!

4.  Encourage another by your "love" actions - forgiving before forgiveness is ever asked for, not allowing issues to build until they boil over, and helping one out of the pit of despair are only the result of having embraced the call of being "on mission" with Jesus!

The road to forgiveness

²⁷ “But to you who are listening I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, ²⁸ bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. ²⁹ If someone slaps you on one cheek, turn to them the other also. If someone takes your coat, do not withhold your shirt from them. ³⁰ Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back. ³¹Do to others as you would have them do to you."

(Luke 6:27-30)

Jesus is speaking these words - the setting or timing of when they were spoken is important to understand.  First, he is under attack from those who should be shouting in joy at his works.  The Pharisees see him "mixing with" common sinners and criticize him terribly, publicly ridiculing him for the company he keeps.  Second, he is criticized for his timing.  He heals on the Sabbath - seen as a "work" by those of Rabbinical teaching.  Their hearts are so "into" the rule-keeping that they fail to see the needs right before them.  Last, but not least, he has just finished the appointment of his twelve disciples - calling them to be his closest companions during the ministry he performed on this earth.

There is one thing I have learned over the years - if we are prepared for the journey, the path is easier to travel.  It is when we are unprepared to travel where it is we are called to travel that we struggle with the pathway we are on.  At the very beginning of his ministry, Jesus deals with one of the most difficult "roads" that any of his disciples must walk - the road to forgiveness.  Why does he begin with this teaching?  I believe it is because Jesus wanted his disciples to know that they'd find themselves walking it over and over again.  He wanted them to be prepared.

Le me just share a few things that I have gathered on my journey in my understanding of forgiveness:

1. It is a journey we'd rather not travel alone, but we often find ourselves as the only ones realizing that the journey is necessary.  We recognize that there is the need to forgive - bring forgiveness into relationship - but we feel as though we are the only ones traveling the road.  Those who may have committed the offense may not even realize that they play a part in the journey.  It is important to remember we NEVER walk the path alone - Jesus is alongside each step of the way - even when the ones involved in the offense are unaware the journey has begun.
2. It is a road that must be traveled frequently - over and over until the journey is completed.  In this chapter, Jesus was asked by one of his disciples just how many times he must forgive.  He posed a question and suggested an answer that seemed quite generous - seven times.  To that, Jesus answered, "Naw, seventy times seven....", and at that, jaws dropped.  Forgiveness is extended over and over - until it is complete.
3. It is an uninvited pathway - we don't forgive just because another asks us to travel that path with them - we initiate the journey, often without anyone else realizing the journey has begun.  This is quite evident in Jesus' words to his Father on the day of his death, "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do."  Those who needed his forgiveness the most did not seek it - in fact, they did not even know they needed it.  Our offenders often don't seek forgiveness - ours is the path to them.
4. It is an unconditional and costly journey.  I have traveled often - usually taking a relaxing cruise to get away.  One of the "amenities" that is offered through my travel agent is the opportunity to buy "trip insurance".  If the "condition" exists that requires the cancellation of my trip (sickness, natural disaster, etc), I am assured a full refund of my entire "investment" into the trip.  Nothing is lost.  This is not the case with the road to forgiveness.  There is no "trip insurance" with the assurance that your "investment" will be fully enjoyed and participated in by all.  There are no "conditions" under which the journey can be "refunded" if the destination is not reached by all involved in the offense.  In other words, we pay the price - others enjoy the benefit - often without realizing the price that was paid.    

So, although it is a difficult road to travel - it is a necessary one.  Jesus began his ministry with his disciples revealing this much needed lesson of life.  Forgiveness begins with me taking the first step.  Forgiveness is possible only because of the first step taken.  Do unto others...we call this the "golden rule" by which we are to relate to one another.  Easier said than done.  It is a difficult path to walk, but the rewards of the journey are astronomical.  There is nothing more binding than bitterness.  There is nothing more weighing upon us than a load of unforgiveness.  There is nothing more costly to us than forgiveness that is not sought, or is not "deserved".  

There is nothing more freeing than unconditional forgiveness - taking the first step.  There is nothing more enlightening than seeing the other person through the eyes of Christ.  There is nothing more rewarding than the steps toward your offender.  A tough journey at that, but a necessary one!  Walk on!