no thanks, i can handle it.

no thanks, i can handle it

how many times have you said that? how many times have you been struggling, fighting, desperately holding on to that last scrap of sanity that you can call your own. then, when someone asks you "can i help you somehow?" you reply "no thanks, i can handle it".


if this is you, i have to ask you something. what makes you think that you are so tough?


i've been thinking about this all week. you see, sunday was easter. my favorite holiday. that is the day that i surrendered my life to Christ. april 3, 1994. easter sunday morning.


this year, for the first time, i spent the evening watching "king of kings" with my kids. while watching with my son and daughter both at my side, God reminded me of a revelation that i knew once, but had forgotten. "i really don't have to be that tough"


after Jesus was beaten, he had to carry his cross (i believe it was over 2 miles, but i may be wrong) to calvary. have you ever seen "the passion of the Christ"? i don't think that i could carry my cross to my neighbors house after that beating. but do you know what. Jesus couldn't do it either. at one point, while carrying His cross, he fell down and could NOT continue to carry it. so someone else had to carry it for Him!

my friends, don't you see, even our Lord needed help carrying His cross. just like you and me. sometimes we need help. sometimes we need to allow someone else to bear our burdens with us. if Jesus was able to allow someone to help Him, what makes us feel shamed when we can't carry our cross by ourself?

this is a hard lesson for me. i always feel like "hey, it's my cross, it's my battle, if i need help, the Lord will help me" but ya know what, sometimes, the Lord helps us by sending others in His place. and through our stubborness, we refuse the help that he sends us.

so the next time someone says "can i help you?" think about it before you say "no thanks, i can handle it"

much love
theoldmusicbox