Hay Bails

If you've ever heard the analogy "This is the straw that will break the camel's back", then you may be able to relate to our lives right now. It seems, since January 2nd, that everyday something else is placed upon us, another straw so to speak, and without fail we always say, "What else could happen?" or "What else could go wrong?" And every time we say, "I can't take anymore, this is the last straw, I can't handle any more." And the next day comes and so does the next straw.
Don't let straw fool you. It may be small, but it adds up... and after a few weeks of carrying these next straws and those next straws, Aaron and I started carrying around these hay bails on our backs. And they're heavy. And they hurt. We literally feel hunched over at the weight of these invisible straws.
And we're here again. We're at another place where, "We just can't handle anymore. This is the straw that has broken our backs."
But God taught me something. Straw, piece by piece, is light. It's not heavy. It isn't one straw alone that will break a back, it's one straw on top of an already full load.
And God said, "Come to me, all who are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest." If I can continue to hand to God every straw that's placed on me. If I can give it up, the next straw won't break me. So, it's at Jesus' feet that I lay enough straws to build the first little pigs house. It's at Jesus' feet that I weep and hurt and struggle to lay the straw down, struggle to give it up. It's at Jesus' feet that I regain strength to stand up, walk back, and take the next straw.
And it's exhausting... it's exhausting trying not to hold on, learning to let go, and going back knowing that the struggle is coming again. But it's the only way to get through... it's the only way to push on.
And it's hard. I'll never claim that it's easy... but it's necessary.
I've heard it said that "God will never give you more than you can handle." I wish someone would show me scripture for that, because personally, I believe that God will keep giving you more and more and more until the ONLY way you can POSSIBLY handle it is to hand it over to Him. The statement should be, "God will never give you more than you can handle when you're handing it back to Him." I think that statement holds more truth.
So, here we are, bailing hay... filling the Lord's barn to capacity...
Until next time...
Alicia