Blissfull Words of Wisdom

"BURDENS~ I compare the troubles which we have to undergo in the course of a year to a great bundle of sticks, far too large for us to lift. But God does not require us to carry the whole at once. He mercifully unties the bundle, and gives us one stick, which we are to carry today, and then another, which we are to carry tomorrow, and so on. This we might easily manage, if we would only take the burden appointed each day; but we choose to increase our troubles by carrying yesterday's stick over again today, and by adding tomorrow's burden to our load, before we are required to bear it."~ John Newton

These words ring so true to me as to what I've been doing to myself, and as to how God's grace, love and mercy, wishes me to handle my worries, trials and circumstances that I have gone thru, am experiencing today, and what tomorrow may bring. The image of the bundled sticks, is such a great visual for me and of what I do... I may choose to re-carry some sticks, past troubles, guilt, unforgiveness, anger from things done to me, or I did to myself, in the past, or I choose to add some sticks to today's load by conjuring up future problems or scenarios in my head, that usually tend to be far worse than the actual outcome of the situation I'll be worrying about. Sometimes I choose to not pick up any sticks at all, and just sit there in my pile of sticks, with them painfully poking into me. Or my personal favorite, I choose to pick up the entire bundle of sticks all at once! Dwelling on the past, dreading today's load, and adding tons more to my arms, my
heart, by adding all of tomorrows sticks and imagining those "sticks" will be all dirtied and broken, like broken dreams of the past.
BUT FOR GOD... and this my friends, is the sentence that hit me the MOST... "God MERCIFULLY unties the bundle, and gives us first ONE stick, which we are to carry today, and then another, which we are to carry tomorrow, and so on."
Our Savoir, Our Redeemer, Jesus Christ, loves us so, He tenderly unties the tangled and frayed ropes we've wrapped around our lives, gently and methodically untangling and sorting out the broken, painfully sharp, sticks from the ones that, if planted and tended to, could re-root new life. And then He mercifully hands them to us, one at a time... And He will do this every single day for us. It's what I choose to carry or pick up, that is my responsibility.
Matthew 11:29-30 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.

Help me O Lord! One stick at a time Lord, one stick at a time.

Co