Through some
recent problems and trials, I have been reminded of an experience I
had when I was in Boy Scouts. We were setting out on a 60 mile hike
in the mountains. We were to carry all we needed in back packs and
walk the entire distance. In preparation I packed a lot of things
that I thought I needed, and got a new pair of hiking boots that I
thought fit me good enough.
The first day of
hiking was an eye-opener. I struggled to make it through the first 10
miles. My pack was heavier than expected, my feet ached because my
boots were too loose. It didn't take long for the others the get
ahead of me and I was walking by myself for most of that day. Some
tried to stay behind with me, but I was still too slow. I took many
stops and I got further and further behind. Eventually, one of the
scout masters came back to me and took some of the heavier things out
of my bag. It wasn't much, but it kept me going a bit longer.
However, the pack was still too heavy and I continued to be in the
back, almost miles behind. I eventually stopped and sat down and
waited hoping that someone would pick me up or carry my bag for me.
Another scout master came, but he didn't do what I wanted. He traded
shoes with me and took a few more things out of my bag and walked
with me the rest of the way that day. The bag was still heavy, but it
didn't feel that way. Having someone there helped and made my burden
lighter.
In this life we
have a certain expectation that someone else is just going to take
away our problems. This doesn't happen, not even with the Savior. He
makes our burdens lighter, in other words, he doesn't just take them
away. He helps us by carrying a few things to make the bigger load
lighter. He gives us better shoes to make the journey easier on us.
He walks with us those last few miles.
So, why doesn't He
just take every hard thing away from us? He's able to do that right?
Of course He can. But, if he did that, how could we become stronger?
How could we learn? Like my experience on that first day, my heavy
load wasn't just taken away and I wasn't given a ride to that first
camp. I needed to get there myself. I learned that I needed better
fitting shoes and learned that many things that I was carrying I
didn't need. Like in life, God isn't going to take away a trial
completely just because we were unprepared or made a mistake. We
still need to learn and become stronger from that experience. If we
can only go as far as we can go on our own, He will come and lighten
our load and walk a few miles with us.
After that first
day, I wore my regular shoes and left some of the things I didn't
need on the truck. I still had to carry my backpack, and I still had
to walk the rest of the way. But, I was able to make it, because my
burden was lighter.