I enjoy traveling and don't mind flying, but the whole "baggage" thing gets tiresome. There are just so many rules now. Don't get me wrong, I know the rules are to keep us safe, but it's hard to keep up with them, sometimes. You have to go online to check out the baggage fees for the airline you are flying with, then check what is and is not allowed to be packed. You also have to check their measurement rules for "carry on" bags. If you are "checking" a bag that won't be carried on, you need to put your contact information on a little tag on the bag, in case it gets lost. Then there's the whole "getting on the plane, finding your seat, and trying to find an empty place in an overhead bin where your carry on bag fits." Then, once you get to your destination, you go to Baggage Claim to wait for your checked bag to appear on the conveyor belt. By the time you get where you're going, you're exhausted.
Personal baggage gets tiresome, too.
I'm talking about the kind of baggage we keep in our hearts and minds. Oh, sometimes, I know, we "check" our bags for awhile and put them out of our minds and hope they'll get lost, but they always seem to come back around to us with the tag that says "I'm yours! Pick me up!"
Some of us, like me, are stuffers. We'll stuff the baggage "under the seat or in the overhead bin" and ignore it for awhile. Sooner or later, though, we arrive to where we take it back out and have to carry it again.
We even make up our own rules for our personal baggage. "If I move to a different place, job, etc., all will be better." Or how about, "if I marry the right person who understands me, I'll be happy." The most common rule, however, is "if I ignore it long enough, it will go away."
The thing about personal baggage is, if you never unpack it...it never goes away.
Personal baggage will wear you down, tire you out, steal your happiness, and, sometimes, make you sick.
Some of us have reasons why we haven't "unpacked our baggage." Sometimes it's because it was so painful, we don't ever want to see it again. Sometimes, it's because it's been packed away for so long, we don't even remember it's there, so it's been sitting in "unclaimed baggage."
Jesus came so that we could enjoy life and live fully. (John 10:10 AMP) When we carry our baggage and never unpack it, we are missing out on all that He has for us. We are missing out on freedom and happiness. He never meant for us to carry our baggage, for it to wear us down. In Matthew 11:28, He tells us "Come to me all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest." He even tells us in 1 Peter 5:7 to "cast our cares (anxieties, worries, baggage) on Him, for He cares for us."
Jesus is in the "unpacking" business. Let Him "claim" your baggage. Give it to Him and leave it there. The next time it tries to come around on that "conveyor belt," don't pick it up. It doesn't belong to you anymore. The name on the tag has been changed to "Jesus."
I'm look forward to traveling lighter, how about you?
