Rocks
Walking some of the South Coast footpath with groups from Ocean Church has been a great experience recently. There have been lots of time to enjoy spending time in nature and appreciating the beauty of our surroundings, as well as the chance to go deeper in conversation and relationships.
On my first trip, I found a small rock that I liked. It had layers of different coloured rock. It wasn’t smooth or perfectly formed in a conventional sense but fitted fairly comfortably into my hand. Something of the layers spoke to me about how it has endured in comparison to the relative fleetingness of human life. It wasn’t especially attractive or that remarkable but it seemed a good memento of the journey.
On our next walk along the Devon coastline, we tackled a fifteen-mile walk one day with plenty of elevation to conquer. When we stopped for lunch, I discovered another rock, this time more marbled in appearance. It was fairly substantial and could operate as an effective doorstop if required. Lunch is a great opportunity on a walk to shed some of the weight you carry by you and your family eating it. I negated this benefit by choosing to carry the somewhat impractical 1.5 kilogram weight for the next section, until passing it off a few hours later when we were met in a car park.
During our latest escapade, I had taken myself off on the Sunday morning for a quick run to a beach in a nearby estuary. Littered across the space I had chosen to stop were mixed in some reddish sandstone, one of which caught my eye. It was flattish but chunky. To return it to our accommodation, I would have to carry the kilogram stone back up a hundred metres of climbing on my return run. Which is what I did.
Carrying extra weight is not normally recommended. It is awkward and ladening you down, making it hard to move at speed. When you are out of breath, randomly running along countryside lanes before breakfast holding a large rock, it also appears strange to passers-by!
My recent small-scale geological scavenging caused me to think about the different metaphorical weights we carry. Some of the responsibilities we hold we are in no position to lay down. Looking after children or parents may be an example of something that takes our time and energy that we wouldn’t choose to abscond, even if it were an option.
A different type of weight might be a role we voluntarily take on. Often these are good things but there is a cost on our time and energy. Too long spent or picking up too many of these can lead us to feel exhausted or burned out.
A further type of load can be the messages we have been told or have somehow chosen to believe about ourselves. Negative thoughts or mindsets can potentially prevent us from progressing. They can become an additional burden that no one has asked us to take on but weigh heavy on our hearts or minds.
In Matthew 11, Jesus encouraged people to come to him, saying his yoke is easy and his burden is light. It would have conjured images of followers walking alongside Jesus, like a pair of cattle, sharing the load. The Greek word used for ‘easy’ is chrēstos, which means well-fitted and suited for use. In the context of other religious leaders had the time, Jesus was moving away from a legalistic framework but a kind and collaborative way of life.
Perhaps when we consider the weights, burdens or responsibilities that we carry, we can think about why we hold them and whether it is time to lay them down, especially those no one has asked us to pick up. And we can mull what it means to take on Jesus’ yoke at the stage of life we are currently at and how we can work in unity with him to find his promised rest.
