God Bears Our Burdens
“Blessed be the Lord, who daily bears our burden, the God who is our salvation.” (Psalm 68:19 NASB)
A skit performed at my grandmother’s church on Good Friday, delivered a message that impacted me deeply.
After the pastor’s message, two well known ladies in the church seated themselves at a small table next to the pulpit with coffee mugs in their hands, and brown sacks hung over their backs.
Their dialogue began: “Oh, I was so hoping that my husband and I would be able to go up to Canada for our vacation this year, but with the economy the way it is, I just don’t think it’s possible.”
“That’s too bad,” the other woman answered.
“Yeah, and I really need it this year. My life is so stressful.” The woman placed a rock into the sack hanging over her shoulders.
“Yeah, I mean, look at the world, it’s so unbelievably messed up! There’s so much wrong with our world!” Each one listed their complaints verbally.
As the ladies continued in their conversation, the rocks being added to their sacks from every worry, made the brown material hang low with heaviness. When they tried to stand up, they couldn’t, because they were being weighed down.
The two women had to do something, so they prayed and as they asked God for help, their burdens were removed and they felt alive, light and refreshed.
As I watched, I felt like a bullet had just hit me between the eyes. I had what could be described as an epiphany. I felt like I finally got it.
God doesn’t promise that our lives will be easy, or painless, however, they will be easier, and less painful if we allow him to take our burdens. And when we do so, we will feel lighter and be better equipped to follow Him, unburdened by the unnecessary things of this world.
SHANNON MEIERS
Shannon Meiers is a 16 year old home-schooled sophomore in high-school. Shes an aspiring writer, and is currently working with the special needs ministries at her church. Shannon, or Shan as her friends know her, is constantly learning… (read more…)
God of Second Chances
“Let me live that I may praise you, and may your laws sustain me.” (Psalm 119:175 NIV)
Our God is a God of second chances and that fact was never more real to me than one summer afternoon.
In a single moment, I decided carelessly to jump in a pool. My swimming skills were lacking. A nanosecond after I hit the water, I knew something was wrong. I should have floated right back up. The water was only four feet deep. If only I could stand up! But buoyancy was working against me, and the shimmery floor below was evading my efforts to plant my feet firmly on the surface. During this harrowing experience, I went from a confident, bubbly teenager giggling on the sidelines to a scared, terrified little girl fighting for her life.
Panic set in. So this was it. This is how I would go home. I was about to die.
Immediately following my thoughts came an absurd sense of peace. I knew where I was going if I died. When I put my faith in Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior, I was assured an eternity in heaven. And that fact, in what I thought to be the last few seconds of my life, was immensely comforting.
But I knew if God wanted me on earth, he would bring me out of this. I had swallowed some water and was choking, so I prayed fervently to God for clarity of mind, something I could do, or some way out of this nightmare. My arms and legs were still flailing all over the place. Spots swam in front of my eyes, and for a couple seconds it went black. I knew I didn’t have long. Only a miracle could save me now.
And a miracle is exactly what I got. Somehow, God gave me the sense to stick my hand out of the water and wave it frantically to get someone’s attention. Then, I heard a voice whisper across my heart, “Calm down, my daughter. Everything will be all right. Calm down and plant your feet.”
Suddenly, my head was out of the water, and I was gulping in glorious, wonderful air. I was clinging to the side of the pool with a fellow teen bobbing beside me. I’m not sure how he got me out, but I know that God is definitely active in my life, and as the pool incident proves, I’m here and have a purpose. I keep thanking God for giving me another chance at life.
Since then, I’ve found that I am able to laugh more, love better, and share more. During those horrifying seconds under water, I decided I would live my life for God and make every second count
“The LORD will keep you from all harm- He will watch over your life, the LORD will watch over your coming and going, both now and forevermore.” (Psalm 121:7-8)
SHANNON MEIERS
Shannon Meiers is a 16 year old home-schooled sophomore in high-school. Shes an aspiring writer, and is currently working with the special needs ministries at her church. Shannon, or Shan as her friends know her, is constantly learning… (read more…)
real devo: good out of bad
I’ve never been a huge fan of change.
Maybe because when I was little, it seemed that change only brought bad things. Change brought stressful jobs to my dad. Change moved me away from my best friends. Change was a little bit scary. And change hurt.
Then I grew up (not necessarily matured, just sayin’,) and realized that change could also bring good things. Change brought a better job to dad. Change moved me to new friends. Change wasn’t so scary anymore, and sometimes it could even be fun!
Then I grew some more and realized that God always has a plan or my life, and He uses the change to bring good things from it.
Always. Every time. Maybe not instantly, maybe not anything that we can see, but we can be assured that He will bring… Read the rest of this article at Real Teen Faith!
By RTF Staff Writer Shannon Meiers
SHANNON MEIERS
Shannon Meiers is a 16 year old home-schooled sophomore in high-school. Shes an aspiring writer, and is currently working with the special needs ministries at her church. Shannon, or Shan as her friends know her, is constantly learning new things about God’s grace, forgiveness, and unmeasurable love. Shannon came to know Christ at the age of 5, and has been striving to live for him ever since!
The God Who Bears Our Burdens
“Blessed be the Lord, who daily bears our burden, the God who is our salvation.” (Psalm 68:19 NIV1984)
A skit was performed at my grandmother’s church on Good Friday that deeply impacted me.
After the pastor’s message, two well known ladies In the church seated themselves next to the pulpit, at a small table with coffee mugs in their hands, and packs on their backs.
Their talk went something like this:
“Oh, I was so hoping that my husband and I would be able to go up to Canada for our vacation this year, but with the economy the way it is, I just don’t think it’s possible.”
“That’s too bad.”
“Yeah, and I really need it this year. Everything is just so stressful.”
“Yeah, I mean, look at the world, it’s so unbelievably messed up! There’s so much wrong with our world!”
As the ladies continued their conversation, a large rock was being added to the packs on their backs every time they worried about the stuff in their lives. When they tried to stand up, they couldn’t because they were being weighed down.
Toss Your Burdens Aside
They had to do something, so they prayed. Lo and behold, as they prayed, their burdens were removed and they once more felt alive, light and refreshed.
As I watched, I felt like a bullet had just hit me between the eyes. I had what could be described as an epiphany. I felt like I finally got it.
God doesn’t promise that our lives will be easy or painless, however, they will be easier and less painful if we allow him to take our burdens.
And when we do so, we will feel lighter and be better equipped to follow Him, unburdened by the unnecessary things of this world.
SHANNON MEIERS
Shannon Meiers is a 16 year old home-schooled sophomore in high-school. Shes an aspiring writer, and is currently working with the special needs ministries at her church. Shannon, or Shan as her friends know her, is constantly learning… (read more…)
An Etch-A-Sketch Life
Life is like an Etch-A-Sketch.
No, really; bear with me here for a moment. It takes a lot of skill and patience to create something beautiful, and even one little mistake can ruin the whole picture. Think about it. 
Say a young child is trying hard to draw a picture on an etch-a-sketch. No matter how hard he tries, he always messes up the picture, and there’s no way to fix it! The child starts to get discouraged and almost gives up.
But then, a kind stranger comes along and picks the child up and sets him back on his feet and before the child’s very eyes, the man clears the etch a sketch’s screen with a flip of his wrist. Very soon, his fingers set to work on the etch-a-sketch’s dials, deftly spinning an exciting, beautiful picture like none the child had ever seen before. The child sniffed away his tears as he took the offered Etch-A-Sketch, protesting weakly that he would only mess up the picture again.
The stranger smiled indulgently, patted the child on the head, and simply told him to add to the picture, and when he made another mistake, the stranger would be there to fix it. And he was true to his word. In a very short time, when the boy made another mistake, the stranger was right there. But instead of erasing it altogether this time, he simply worked the mistake into a stunning design, creating something even more breathtaking than before. He then hands he etch-a-sketch back to the boy and watches over him with a smile as the small one attempts to expand upon the picture.
That is an Etch-A-Sketch is life and the little child is you and me. Who is the kind stranger? No other than Jesus himself. When someone puts their trust in him, he takes their life full of sin and ugliness, and hands them back a clean slate, a fresh start, a new beginning, and a life free from sin and death. Then, when we make a mistake, as we will, he very lovingly weaves our mistakes into the picture, helping us to learn from them and still produce a masterpiece worthy of proud display.
SHANNON MEIERS
Shannon Meiers is a 16 year old home-schooled sophomore in high-school. Shes an aspiring writer, and is currently working with the special needs ministries at her church. Shannon, or Shan as her friends know her, is constantly learning… (read more…)
Facebook
Twitter