SunflowerRose's Journal

An old story is told of three men who were traveling along a road.
Each man had two bags: one bag was tied in front of his neck and the
other bag was tied on his back. When the first man
was asked what was in his bags, he said, "In the bag on
my back are all the good things friends and family have
done. I keep them safely behind me. In the front bag are all
the bad things that have happened to me. Every now and
then I stop, open the front bag, take the things out, examine
them, and think about them." Because this man stopped
frequently to concentrate on all the bad things that were in the bag in
front of him, he really didn't make much progress along the roadway.
The second man was asked about his two bags. He replied, "In the front
bag I have placed all the good things I've done. I like to see them, so quite often
I take them out to show them off to people. The bag in the back? I keep all my
mistakes in there and carry them all the time. I’ve made a lot of mistakes – the
bag on my back is very heavy. It slows me down, but you know, for some
reason I can't put it down."
When the third man was asked about his bags, he answered, "The bag
in front is very large. There I keep all the positive thoughts I have about
people, all the blessings I've ever experienced, and all the good things other
people have done for me. The weight isn't a problem, in fact it’s almost
weightless. The bag is like the sails of a ship. It keeps me moving forward. The
bag on my back is empty. There's nothing in it. I cut a big hole in the bottom
of it. In there I put all the bad things that I can think about myself or hear
about others. I put in all my mistakes and all the hurtful things others have
done to me. They go in one end of the bag and out the other, so I'm not
carrying around any extra weight at all." How about you? Got some
excess baggage you need to get rid of? What are you carrying in your
bags? Are you counting your blessings or clinging to you hurts? Don't
journey through life burdened down with needless baggage from your
past. Jesus invites us, “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy
laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I
am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my
yoke is easy, and my burden is light,” (Matthew 11:28-30)