Everyone’s Garbage

Last week for Earth Day, the whole school got together and roamed the town in search of trash.  We picked up (reportedly) a dead mouse, snakeskin, a couple hundred cigarette butts, candy wrappers, shredded paper and other assorted junk.  After the kids finished cleaning up the town, we sat down on the lawn of the bank for some refreshments.  The students had filled several bags with trash and now they lounged around with juice boxes and chip bags in their hands.  Pretty soon, I saw little straw wrappers flying in the breeze and children chasing down runaway chip bags and the trash from our pick-up day was undoing all the hard work we had just completed.

So, I took charge and began to go person to person, gathering up empty chip bags, depleted juice boxes and random wrappers.  Pretty soon, my hands were crammed full of stuff when a tall teenager teased me, “Thanks, Mom.”  Yes, that’s me, with my hands overflowing with everyone else’s trash.

And then it hit me:  maybe that’s why I feel so overwhelmed and overloaded some days.  I’m trying to pick up everyone else’s garbage and clean up their messes and fix their mistakes.  Perhaps it is the “Mom syndrome” or maybe just part of being a teacher, but I want to fix things and help out my irresponsible students (and daughters or son), taking their loads upon my own back.

So, when I was reading the story about the crippled man whose friends carried him through the roof so Jesus could heal them (see Mark 2:1-12), I identified with those friends.  They just wanted to bring their friend to Jesus, because they knew He could fix the problem.  I think my problem is that I’ve been carrying every one’s mats but not really taking them to Jesus.

I desperately want these kids to know the saving power of Christ dwelling in them, and I have a responsibility to be a light, but it’s not my job to save each and every one of them.  My job is to carry them to Jesus in prayer.  He is the only One who can save and the only One who can heal, transform, and fix unfixable problems.

I’m weary and burdened from carrying everyone elses burdens (and my own too) and I hear my Savior call to me, “Come.”  He tells me to lay them all at His feet, to bring those people and problems to Him, and He promises me rest in return.

“Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.”
Matthew 11:28, NIV

Thank You Jesus.

Heather Cox

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