I Don’t Do Much After All

As a mom there are times when I feel like the weight of the world falls on my shoulders. I’m the one who has to make sure we have a meal on the table each evening. I’m the one who makes sure the kids have decent clothes to wear to school. I make sure everyone’s up and where they’re supposed to be each day. And while my husband make keep close tabs on our house’s thermostat, I’m the one who takes our home’s emotional temperature periodically to make sure everyone’s doing “ok.”

Today with a sick child sitting on the sofa the weight on my shoulders seems even heavier. I’ll need to get her to the doctor’s office today, bring her lots of water and kleenex, and generally keep her supplied with whatever will help her heal faster. Not only that, but I’ve still got to get my work done, clean the house up for soon-to-arrive houseguests, make a few phone calls, and bathe the dogs.

I confess, as I drank my coffee and sneezed my head off (thanks to allergy problems) this morning, I was resenting the demands of the day. My shoulders were physically drooping with the weight of the impending responsibility. But as I arose from my kitchen table and looked out my back window I noticed the children lining up in the elementary school playground just behind my house. All the children had their backpacks on their backs and a handful of teachers gathered at the door to let them in the building so they could begin their day. Undoubtedly most of the children have parents who helped make sure they arrived at school clean, dressed, fed and ready for the day.

I walked to the front of my house and looked out the windows there. Garbage cans lined the street where responsible neighbors had put them at the curb for emptying. Cars moved slowly down the road carrying people to work. The sun was up and another day was beginning.

That’s when it occurred to me that I’m not responsible for the world. You’d think that would be a no-brainer, but occasionally, ever so rarely, I honestly wake up in the mornings feeling like it’s my responsibility to haul the sun up into the sky. Silly, I know, but that’s just the kind of martyr I am.

Today I am grateful that I have a God who never slumbers or sleeps. I have a God who, according to Psalm 139, is already busy working on my behalf before I even wake up in the mornings. I have a God who has the whole world in His hands. Not only that, but He has my world in His hands, His very capable, strong hands.

So I have a few responsibilities. Who doesn’t? The Bible tells me I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. And apart from Him, I can do nothing.

So which will it be today? Will you and I accomplish all we are ordained to do today through His strength? Or will we wrestle with the weight of the world on our shoulders like disillusioned martyrs? I’m opting for resting in His strength, letting Him carry the weight of the world, and anticipating with joy the great things He will do…. but I do need to get my trash can to the curb.