A story is told of Jesus and His disciples walking one day along a stony road. Jesus asked each of them to choose a stone to carry for Him. John, it is said, chose a large one while Peter chose the smallest. Jesus led them then to the top of a mountain and commanded that the stones be made bread. Each disciple, by this time tired and hungry, was allowed to eat the bread he held in his hand, but of course Peter's was not sufficient to satisfy his hunger. John gave him some of his.Some time later Jesus again asked the disciples to pick up a stone to carry. This time Peter chose the largest of all. Taking them to a river, Jesus told them to cast the stones into the water. They did so, but looked at one another in bewilderment. "For whom," asked Jesus, "did you carry the stone."
I read this story in Elisabeth Elliot's book, These Strange Ashes. I had to ask myself after reading this story..For whom do I carry the stone entrusted to me? We don't always choose the stone that we carry, but we CAN choose the attitude that we carry it with. A stone, especially a large stone, can get pretty heavy as we walk the journey God puts before us. It can make a big difference if we walk with the right attitude.
Another way to look at this story is...when we pick up a stone to carry, are we carrying it for ourselves or are we carrying it for Jesus? I've been looking back over my life and asking myself, did God ask me to carry that? Or did I pick it up on my own? Was I self-seeking or surrendered?
I only want to carry a stone that Jesus has asked me to carry. If He has asked me to carry it, He will equip me for the journey with grace and strength. If I pick it up on my own to carry, it won't be too long before that the burden is too heavy to bear.Are you carrying stones? For whom do you carry them?
3 comments:
Hi Patty!Just wanted to come and say hi as I've done little blogging lately and have missed reading up on friends. Thanks for these words about encouragement. It's good food for thought.
Yes, He'll give us the strength to carry what He wills me to carry. I am often guilty of picking up stones on my own, I'm sorry to say.
Aloha patty,
I found your blog while visiting Maxine. The title of your blog caught my attention. It is so awesome how the Lord leads and when he led me here I was blessed. I too have a chronic illness and I enjoyed reading your posts under chronic illness. and I enjoyed this post as well. my stones are lighter when he helps me carry them.
God Bless Lorie
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