Drop the Rocks

I will set a good example for someone else today. I will be living proof of the maxim "Most folks are as happy as they make up their minds to be." Anon.

A friend recently told me a story – sort of a modern parable he had heard or read recently – that I would like to briefly share with you.

The story is told of a boat leaving port on a journey of exploration and discovery. A woman was late getting to port for one reason or another, thus missing the boat. She wanted to be on it so badly though, she jumped into the water and began to swim as fast as she could to catch up.

The passengers cheered her on, but she was moving too slowly; what is worse, she was struggling to stay afloat as she held a stone in each hand – making her efforts most futile.

Seeing her predicament, the explorers kept up their encouragement; they cheered her on, they clapped and whistled, they motioned for her to hurry up, but all to no avail.

Finally, one seasoned veteran decided that encouragement was not enough; nor could they stop the boat and turn around; instead, it would be up to the swimmer to do something quite radical, and so he called out to her through the megaphone, “Drop the rocks! Let go of the rocks!”

Hearing his advice, and knowing how the load was not just slowing her down, but likely would lead to her death, the woman dropped the stones from each of her hands, and swam quickly and safely to the slow-moving boat.

We continue our journey through Lent, a journey which truly is one of exploration and discovery. One challenge we face is knowing what to do with what we find, but more challenging yet is knowing what to leave behind as we begin (or began) our journey.

We tend to short-change ourselves if we limit our Lenten disciplines to inconsequential matters, like giving up chocolates or cookies for six weeks.

Lent only has lasting value when we identify things that hold us back, weigh us down, or that prevent us from being the kind of people God would have us be. Lent is a season that invites us to “drop those stones” – not just for survival, but for making progress on our journey of discovery.

What are the rocks that hold you back?

I can’t answer that question for you, but a good place to start would be those character defects that are pretty universal in nature: Sloth (refusing to take care of one’s responsibilities); Lust (refusing to love what one already has); Anger (preferring revenge over understanding); Pride (an oversized ego on steroids); Envy (turning a blind eye to what one has); Gluttony (abusing what one has received from God); and Greed (grabbing all one can at the expense of others).

No one has to wait for Lent in order to address the many things that separate us from being the people God wants us to be. No one has to stop changing, either, when the season of Lent has run its course.

One of the great joys of life is being able to admit that we are human, which means we are created in the image of God and able to be far better than we sometimes are. It also means that we are capable of doing far less than we ought, or doing far worse than is pleasing to God, loving to neighbor, or honorable to self.

Being human means we aren’t perfect, but we can improve; we can make progress in life. All it takes is a willingness to drop our rocks and to keep swimming. It means asking God, in prayer, to help along the way.

I believe God is MORE than willing to help us become the people God wants us to be – because God loves us THAT much.

At least that’s what I think this week in this, our world.