A Moving Sidewalk

I

t never ceases to amaze me how God continually reveals himself in the most unlikely places, using the most unlikely events in everyday life, teaching us great lessons about himself.  The trouble is we rarely take time to notice all the wonderful opportunities we have to learn more about our Heavenly Father because we are too busy and too occupied.  This was made abundantly clear to me during recent trip I took and the classroom where God taught me this lesson was in the airport.

What you may be wondering, could God possibly teach you in an airport?  Well, you would be surprised just how much you can learn there.  I was returning to Texas after a surprise visit to see my family.  I got to the airport, checked my bags, got my boarding pass, and I was making my way to the gate.  Instead of walking down the long hallway to the terminal, I opted to jump on one of those moving sidewalks that will carry you to your destination. 

I stepped on the moving platform and enjoyed the ride.  Just a few feet in front of me was a woman with a large carry-on and an infant.  The little baby was not very happy about taking a trip and it was all the woman could do to control the child.  Had it not been for the moving platform, she would have been unable to proceed to the gate with both her child and her bag.  One of them would have been left behind and, from the look on her face; I’m not sure which one she would have chosen.

But the moving platform allowed her to carry both her bag and her child without overdue concern.  By the time we reached the end of the long hallway, the baby had fallen asleep and the woman easily picked up her baggage and walked to the gate.

This is a beautiful illustration of 1 Peter 5:7. In this short passage of scripture, Peter reminds us that Christ carries our burdens for us and lightens our load.  This verse reads, “casting all your anxiety on Him, because He cares for you.”  Notice here that Jesus invites us to cast all of our cares on him.  That means everything, all our burdens, all our trials, all our sadness, all our joy, all our concerns, all of our everything because he loves us.

Far too often we insist on trudging through life, weighted down with all our baggage when all the while we could be riding on a moving sidewalk.  Jesus invites us to do just that.  He wants us to give our burdens to him, to depend on him, and to trust him to get us through the long journey of life so we can arrive safely at our destination. 

So, if you are struggling today underneath the heavy burden of life’s cares, roll all your burdens over to Jesus.  He is more than able and willing to take your burden and to walk with you along life’s road.  How about a ride on a moving sidewalk today?