Worth the Weight

Every once in a while I pull out an old coffee cup that Brian bought me a few years ago. It's one of my favorites. On it, are the words "Worth the Weight." It's a Paula Dean cup that he bought in Tunica, Mississippi.

I am assuming that when Paula Dean talks about something being "worth the weight" she is referring to the sticks of butter she manages to work into every concoction she creates in the kitchen.

This cup has always brought a smile to my face. I was pregnant with Addison when Brian brought the cup home and was effectively working on gaining 40 pounds before she arrived (not by choice....I was aiming for 25 pounds and missed a little bit).

We joked that Addison was worth the Weight and the Wait.

Now I look at the same coffee cup and can't help but think about the weight I often feel when I seek Christ. When I say "weight" I don't mean a heavy weight or even a burden.

I've just become more aware that when I'm seeking God and close to Him through His word, I find myself carrying more weight. My heart hurts more for the things I think He hurts for. I find myself more consumed with the worries of His kingdom and not of the world.

And I feel a weight.

It's often the reason I slip away from His closeness at times...because I don't want to feel the weight. Sometimes I would rather live away from the things that break His heart and pretend they don't exist and live lighter.

But when I'm close to Christ and really in His word, not only does He give me a weight to carry for Him, He also almost always gives me a way to reach out or minister or attempt the lighten the load by serving someone else.

I know that being close to Him is worth the extra weight you may carry when seeking Him. He calls us to love Him and to hurt for what breaks His heart. We are to be His hands and feet on this Earth.

Then he said to them all: "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. Luke 9:23

Taking up His cross may be heavy with weight. We may feel the splinters of grief, sorrow, and concern. But what else really matters? Is there anything more important than us carrying the cross for Him. Nothing is more important that us seeking Him so that He'll use us to bring others to eternal life.

Worth the weight? Absolutely. I will carry the weight with joy.

May you carry His weight with joy as you seek Him to move in your life. Jesus is always worth the weight.