Heavy Weigh-In
Every morning, I step on the scale with a mixture of hope and fear.
There are days when I’ve lost a pound, and I feel like I should celebrate. Never mind that I can’t actually see the difference. Somehow that tiny number tells me I’m moving in the right direction.
Then there are the other mornings.
The scale seems to laugh at me.
“Really? After you skipped dessert?”
It’s amazing how much power we give a number. More than it deserves, for sure.
But lately I’ve realized there is another kind of weight that never shows up on the bathroom scale.
Some of us aren’t overweight.
We’re overburdened.
We carry deadlines.
We carry expectations.
We carry guilt.
We carry regret.
We carry everyone else’s problems.
And somehow, we have convinced ourselves that’s what responsible adults should do. However, that was never meant to be the case.
Every person in our lives seems to need a little piece of us.
Our spouses need us.
Our children need us.
Our parents need us.
Our jobs need us.
Our friends need us.
Before long, it feels like everyone is taking a small piece until there’s not much left. Just bits and pieces of a now fragmented whole.
We are not asses (well some are, ha 😊). But seriously, we are not pack mules. Yes, I know technically I’m talking about donkeys, but you get the point.
They were actually created to carry heavy loads.
We weren’t.
Have you ever noticed that Jesus never asked us to carry the weight of the world? He simply asked us to bring it to Him. Lay it down at His feet and He will lighten your load.
“Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30
The next time you step on a scale, remember that the heaviest thing you’re carrying probably isn’t measured in pounds.
It’s measured in worry.
In responsibility.
In fear.
In trying to be enough for everyone.
Maybe today is your real weigh-in.
Not for your body…
But for your soul.
If you’re carrying more than you were ever meant to bear, lay it down.
God has been waiting to carry it all along.