I bought groceries the other day, and as I wandered down the produce aisle, I went past a cart in which the worker had stacked a pile of lettuce heads that were obviously past their prime, rusting and wilted. Meanwhile, the line in front of the bagged salads stretched halfway across the produce section. I was headed that way myself—only because they are on sale and I have a coupon, I salved my frugal conscience, certainly not because they are easier.
As I waited my turn, I eased my way past containers of pre-chopped peppers, onions, celery, and garlic. I had seen tubs of already mashed potatoes earlier, and when I scoured the freezer section for shrimp to cook in my bouillabaisse, I had to dig to find some that were not peeled, deveined, and pre-cooked. Everyone wants the easy way these days. Even the last few years I taught piano, it was not unusual for a parent to ask. “How long will it take for my child to learn how to do this?” After 45 years I was still learning! No wonder you hear so much about easy-lose diets, an easy way to a toned body, and easy-read Bibles.
When I was a child, older folks often said, “It’s only worth the effort it cost you.” God never says being His child will be easy. Even when Jesus says, “My yoke is easy and my burden is light,” He is talking in relative terms—it is still a yoke and a burden. But, unlike sin’s, His yoke and burden do not come with the built-in weight of guilt, an overriding, insurmountable millstone that will crush your spirit long before it destroys your soul for an eternity. Paul says we will be a servant to something, either to sin unto death or obedience unto righteousness…But now being made free from sin and become servants to God, you have your fruit unto sanctification, and the end eternal life., Rom 6:16, 22. Unlike the fatal weight of sin, this yoke and burden we can “live” with!
The next time I want a salad, I will try to think about that, and buy the whole head, then relax and enjoy the chopping.
Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity and cleanse me thoroughly from my sin…Purge me with hyssop and I shall be clean; wash me and I shall be whiter than snow. Make me to hear joy and gladness...Restore unto me the joy of your salvation, and uphold me with your free spirit…Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, Oh Jehovah, the God of my salvation, and my tongue shall sing aloud of your righteousness. Selected lines from the 51st Psalm.
Dene Ward
As I waited my turn, I eased my way past containers of pre-chopped peppers, onions, celery, and garlic. I had seen tubs of already mashed potatoes earlier, and when I scoured the freezer section for shrimp to cook in my bouillabaisse, I had to dig to find some that were not peeled, deveined, and pre-cooked. Everyone wants the easy way these days. Even the last few years I taught piano, it was not unusual for a parent to ask. “How long will it take for my child to learn how to do this?” After 45 years I was still learning! No wonder you hear so much about easy-lose diets, an easy way to a toned body, and easy-read Bibles.
When I was a child, older folks often said, “It’s only worth the effort it cost you.” God never says being His child will be easy. Even when Jesus says, “My yoke is easy and my burden is light,” He is talking in relative terms—it is still a yoke and a burden. But, unlike sin’s, His yoke and burden do not come with the built-in weight of guilt, an overriding, insurmountable millstone that will crush your spirit long before it destroys your soul for an eternity. Paul says we will be a servant to something, either to sin unto death or obedience unto righteousness…But now being made free from sin and become servants to God, you have your fruit unto sanctification, and the end eternal life., Rom 6:16, 22. Unlike the fatal weight of sin, this yoke and burden we can “live” with!
The next time I want a salad, I will try to think about that, and buy the whole head, then relax and enjoy the chopping.
Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity and cleanse me thoroughly from my sin…Purge me with hyssop and I shall be clean; wash me and I shall be whiter than snow. Make me to hear joy and gladness...Restore unto me the joy of your salvation, and uphold me with your free spirit…Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, Oh Jehovah, the God of my salvation, and my tongue shall sing aloud of your righteousness. Selected lines from the 51st Psalm.
Dene Ward
RSS Feed