Carrying About….

by Terry Wane Benton

What mental and emotional baggage do we carry that weighs us down and makes our hearts heavy? Paul speaks of being persecuted, hard-pressed on every side, and perplexed, but these things were not what he “carried about” in his heart (II Corinthians 4:6-16). The way these negative things became bearable was because he was “always carrying about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus” and by letting his mind carry Jesus death and the suffering that brought about Jesus’ death “the life of Jesus” could become manifest in his body (II Corinthians 4:8-10).

Thus, Paul always considered being like Jesus in his handling of persecution and pressures of various sorts. He learned not to carry about the resentment and anger of being rejected and persecuted. He chose instead to use these things as an opportunity to gain some perspective on what Jesus suffered for him.

Jesus went through this and more for me. Instead of despairing and being crushed by how people treated him, he chose to think about the suffering Jesus went through to save him. By shifting from a “woe is me” pity party to a greater appreciation for what Jesus went through for us, he had to feel amazed that Jesus loved him so much.

From letting people make you feel worthless and unloved to letting it remind you of the love of Christ, it puts a greater perspective on letting the life of Christ prevail in us and through us.

Don’t carry about the wrong things. Carry about the way Jesus suffered and died for you. That should make you feel very special. Jesus is so much greater than anything or anyone who has hurt you. Jesus experienced all of that rejection and hurt, and was willing to go through it all because He loved you to His own rejection and death on the cross. Let that bring new life and perspective to your heart.

What are you carrying about?