What Do You Need To Unload?
Every year, about 1500 "thru-hikers" set out to walk the
entire Appalachian Trail in a single season. Only 10
percent complete the 2,160 miles of challenging terrain
stretching from Georgia to Maine. One reason some
people drop out early is that they haven't learned to travel
light.
A friend of mine launched his thru-hike carrying a seriously
overloaded backpack. He had a cassette player and six
tapes of bird calls, an air pistol to keep the varmints away,
a camera, a radio, and an alarm clock. "If it ran on batteries,"
he said, "I had one in my pack."
At his first stop, an experienced hiker helped him go through
his pack and decide what to keep and what to send home.
Each item was placed on a gram scale with the question,
"Is it worth it? Do you want to carry this for the next 2000
miles?"
My friend discovered that his biggest problem was an
accumulation of little things. Most of his extra weight
was in ounces, not pounds. He didn't need half of what
was in his first-aid kit nor the extra tube of toothpaste.
His heavy multi-tool knife was replaced with one weighing
only an ounce. A metal knife-fork-and-spoon set gave
way to a single plastic spoon. He sent home 26 pounds
of unnecessary weight.
How many of us are trying to walk the trail of faith in Christ
weighed down by an accumulation of little things -- anger,
bitterness, worry, envy, jealousy, lust, and selfishness?
Instead of enjoying the beauty of life with Jesus, we
complain about how hard it is to follow Him.
Psalm 32 is for everyone who's ready to shed the weight
of sin and regain the joy of walking with the Lord. "Blessed
is he whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are
covered."
What do you need to unload today?
[ Richard Lee Holbert -- from Keith Todd ]
Inspirational Messages
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