Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Matthew 11:28
One Summer when I was in high school, we went to South Padre Island with my aunt and uncle. We stayed in their condo, ate fantastic fresh seafood and got horrible sunburns. At night we teamed up and played Trivial Pursuit. We waded in the shallow water and looked for seashells, but what I liked most was body surfing. We would wade out and wait for a wave to come in. Just before it got to us we would jump and the wave would catch us and carry us in to shore. Over and over we waded out and floated in. One time when we were wading out, I saw what looked like a clear plastic bag with threads. I asked mother what it was and she said she didn't know. I asked her if she thought it would be OK to throw it out farther so no one got tangled up in it. She said that should be fine and I reached out to grab it. I was in for a big surprise because it got me first. It was not a plastic bag, but a Man of War jellyfish! What I thought were threads were venom filled tentacles. It stung me across the forearm and my third and fourth fingers. I tried to wash it off with the salt water but that did no good. You know how hard it is to run in the water? I did a really good job of it, with mother right behind me. We found the lifeguard and he examined the sting. Then much to the surprise of "us city slickers", he put meat tenderizer on it. He explained that it neutralizes the poison and lets the body carry it away. Over the next couple of hours, biology class became more real to me. I had read about lymph glands and how they store and eliminate toxins. Within about thirty minutes or so, the glands under my left arm and in my neck were swollen and sore. I have never forgotten where they are or what they do.
There are toxic things in life just as there are in the ocean and the pain from them is just as real. I could be that we have been "stung" by someone whether it was intentional or not. (In fact as I have been writing this today I am working on forgiving someone who criticized someone in my family.)
It may be that we have gotten tangled up in something that looked innocent and harmless but has hidden dangers. Whatever the source of the poison to our spirit, the result is the same. Ignoring the pain or trying to wash it away by ourselves is useless. Just like I had to go to the lifeguard for help, we have to carry our pain to God. He can take it away, not with meat tenderizer, but by the blood of Jesus.
There are many places in the Bible that urge us to let God take away our pain and other things that poison our spirits. 1 Peter 5:7 says, Cast all your cares on Him for He cares for you. In Matthew 28 we read this.
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”
Many other verses echo this idea. Unfortunately we have an enemy who is all too eager to bring things back to our remembrance even after we have given them to God. God's solution to that is found in Ephesians 6.
Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power.
Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes.
For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.
Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place,
and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.
Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God (Ephesian 6:11-19)
This week let's take time to be grateful for the gift of God that lets us cast our cares on him. Cast away and stand up to the schemes of the enemy who wants to give them back to us.
