Today, my youngest student suddenly looks at me and says, "Thand in my thue." [Translation: Sand in my shoe.] Then he starts working on the velcro.
I quickly convince him that's a bad idea.
So he walks over to the trash can and sits down next to it. "Now can I take my thue off and thake the thand out in there?" At this point the hallelujahs are exclaiming in my head as I realize preschool really does teach extraordinarily valuable things, like don't pick your nose, always use the magic soap (aka hand sanitizer), and don't take your sandy shoes off on the carpet.
Meanwhile, he takes off his shoe and carefully holds it over the trash can.
The sand falls....
and falls....
and falls....
for MINUTES.
An entire sandbox empties into the trash can. I'm not kidding.
How was I supposed to know when he arrived that his shoe had enough sand in it to replenish the entire North Carolina coast line? He wasn't even walking funny.
How many of us walk around with "sandbags" in our life...burdens and insecurities that weigh us down, make us uncomfortable, and slow our progress? But we don't let anyone help us with those burdens and insecurities....not even God. We keep them to ourselves, hiding them in a myriad of ways and hoping that no one will ever see the real us.
Therefore, since we are surrounded by godly friends and family, let us throw off the burdens and insecurities and sins that are too heavy for us to carry on our own, and run the race of life freely! (Hebrews 12:1 - paraphrased by Whimsical Tulips)
Take some time this week to evaluate whether you are hiding some sandbags in your life. What's weighing you down? What keeps you from being all you can be? Find a godly friend to share it with. Suddenly, the burden is much lighter when it's shared. What we hide in the dark is often set free when exposed to the light.
