Unhampered Hiker!

I am not sure of the original source of the following as I have come across it in two different church bulletins as well as via e-mail. I used the illustration with my sermon this past Sunday and am using it here in conjunction with a continuing focus on our life’s journey.

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THRU HIKERS

Every year, about 1500 “thru-hikers” set out to walk the entire Appalachian Trail in a single season. Only 10 percent complete the 2,160 miles of challenging terrain stretching from Georgia to Maine. One reason some people drop out early is that they haven’t learned to travel light.

A friend of mine launched his thru-hike carrying a seriously overloaded backpack. He had a cassette player and six tapes of bird calls, an air pistol to keep the varmints away, a camera, a radio, and an alarm clock. “If it ran on batteries,” he said, “I had one in my pack.”

At his first stop, an experienced hiker helped him go through his pack and decide what to keep and what to send home. Each item was placed on a gram scale with the question, “Is it worth it? Do you want to carry this for the next 2000 miles?

My friend discovered that his biggest problem was an accumulation of little things. Most of his extra weight was in ounces, not pounds. He didn’t need half of what was in his first-aid kit nor the extra tube of toothpaste. His heavy multi-tool knife was replaced with one weighing only an ounce. A metal knife-fork-and-spoon set gave way to a single plastic spoon. He sent home 26 pounds of unnecessary weight.

How many of us are trying to walk the trail of faith in Christ weighed down by an accumulation of little things -- anger, bitterness, worry, envy, jealousy, lust, and selfishness? Instead of enjoying the beauty of life with Jesus, we complain about how hard it is to follow Him.

Psalm 32 is for everyone who’s ready to shed the weight of sin and regain the joy of walking with the Lord. “Blessed is he whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered.” (32:1)

What do you need to unload today?

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What kind of excess baggage are we carrying through life? What is it that we need to UNLOAD TODAY so that we are not hampered on life’s journey and can regain the joy of walking with Jesus? It is important for us to survey the contents of our life and rid ourselves of all that we should not be packing around. Both Paul and Peter listed a number of things we need to discard if we are still carrying them along. ( Colossians 3:8; 1 Peter 2:1)

The Hebrew writer exhorted…
“(1) Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, LET US ALSO LAY ASIDE EVERY WEIGHT, AND SIN WHICH CLINGS SO CLOSELY, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, (2) looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.” ( Hebrews 12:1-2 ESV)

Let us not allow anything to hamper us on our journey Heavenward! The things that negatively impact our relationship with God and each other need to be UNLOADED from our life. Also, acknowledging that the burden of sin was lifted at the cross, let us press on with a humble and penitent spirit, accepting the forgiveness of God. Then we will not be needlessly WEIGHED DOWN as we journey along life’s way.

Have a great day PRESSING ON UNRESTRAINED!
Carl

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