Hang Loose with Christ
For my yoke is easy and my burden is light. Matthew 11:30
Listen to Hang Loose – He Said
Jockey’s Ridge, Nags Head, NC:
Randy fell face first, pitching his hang glider nose into the sand. We laughed, but not too loud. Certainly not loud enough for the other students to hear. But it was funny seeing this pudgy, middle-aged man sprawled on the hot dunes. I imagined back home, when Randy wasn’t vacationing on the Outer Banks, he served on important committees and oversaw the investments of stocks and government bonds. He certainly had the swagger of a man full of confidence.
But Randy couldn’t fly.
A few feet away a young teen slipped his arms through the harness straps and listened intently to his instructor.
“Just run until your feet aren’t touching the ground,” the trainer said. “And whatever you do, don’t jump.”
He didn’t have to add, “like Randy,” but he could’ve. That was Randy’s problem. He would only run a few yards before jumping into the air.
The boy, obedient and trusting, sprinted down the dune, running and leaning forward until… he wasn’t running at all but soaring high. Retrained only by a safety tether the boy glided over the sand, his shadow growing large.
Christ says His yoke is easy, His burden light. The glider’s aluminum frame and angel wings are light enough for a child to carry and not grow weary. But to fly — over the dunes of the Outer Banks — or with Christ above our problems, we need to run as fast as our tiny feet can carry us.
Too often, however, our tendency is to run like Randy and only take a few steps before we grow tired, slow down and lunge for the quick and easy. When we land flat on our face we think Christ has failed us when, in fact, it’s our disobedience that leads to our fall.
The Apostle Paul calls us to run the race of life with perseverance. Christ calls us to harness His power through the yoke of obedience. When we obey these instructions we often find that hanging with Christ isn’t a sacrifice at all. In fact, it’s the most exhilarating thing we can do.