Moving Mountains of Baggage

Jesus says that when we pray, we can move mountains (Mark 11:23). Sometimes, the biggest mountains we have in life are not the ones that are climbed but are the mountains of baggage we’ve accumulated over the course of a lifetime. We’ve all had a lifetime of choices (sometimes those made for us) that add up to the kind of person we tend to be. We are shaped by our experiences and sometimes they leave us bitter, angry, or confused. We had baggage and we need Jesus to help us move mountains.

Jesus sure had a way with people. He could not just talk to them, but He could listen. I think what people need today is to be heard. We need to hear their story, their afflictions, and their hurting. Christians can be good at running straight to the solution – we know Him, we have Jesus, we found Him, He saved us – we’re excited to share the good news! But in our zeal for speaking the truth (Eph 5:15) have we forgotten to listen?

Jesus sure had a way with people. He could listen. We need to learn to listen. Listening is part of “bearing one another’s burdens” (Gal. 6:2). People need a shoulder to cry on and they need to know they can find it in us. It shows how much we care when we take the time to listen and to try to understand (James 1:19).

Jesus sure had a way with people. He spoke, He listened, and He never left them where He found them. That’s the difference between listening then and listening now. Today, some people just want to be heard and to have their story told, but they don’t want to be challenged. The Gospel challenges us to be better, to be different, and to be transformed by our encounter with Jesus.

Jesus had just such an encounter when He listened to the woman at the well in John chapter 4. Yes, He knew her life and her story before she told him, but Jesus still listened to what she had to say. She shared her beliefs with Him saying in verse 25: ““I know that Messiah” (called Christ) “is coming. When he comes, he will explain everything to us.”

She knew in part. She lived in part. She had a difficult past. In Christ, she found her future.

But she may not have, had she not had a humble spirit and ears to hear.

Prayer

Sometimes we don't pray because we don't think we have time. We're too busy and there's already too much going on in our day. We feel like we can't add just one more thing to our list without being overwhelmed. 

But prayer is so valuable, that kind of thinking would have us holding our breath because we don't have time to breathe -- and where would that lead us? Prayer is vital. Prayer is powerful. Prayer with strengthen you. 

Sometimes we don't pray because we don't know what to say. Maybe we've heard some very long, or very powerful, or very moving, or very meaningful prayers and we are intimidated, we don't think God will hear our prayers because it doesn't measure up to what we think a good prayer is. 

Well, that kind of thinking isn't found in the word of God, but it was present in the minds of the first Christians. Let's see what God's word has to say about our ability or inability to put together words that we might think make for a good prayer. 

Romans 8:26-27

In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God.

Sometimes we don't have the words, but that's ok. Pray anyway and be healed.

Forgiveness

Colossians 3:12-13

Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.

For some people, our calling to come out of our darkness and walk with Christ in the light is characterized by our need to leave behind certain friends, family members, habits, and sinful choices. Sometimes we cling to these parts of our lives that we know can be very harmful to us. Sometimes things that we do and say that are outside of God's will for us become for us more important than our own salvation. So, we must learn what is more important, and leave the things behind that hold us back.

For others, there is not some great and compelling temptation to sin. There is not the allure of the world. There are not habits, mistakes, or a sinful life that defines the person. Instead, we struggle with broken hearts. We have expectations for people, and those people have let us down. People have been cruel. People have created pain. And people are not interested in reconciliation. For Christians in this situation, perhaps the most difficult calling that Jesus brings to us is one to forgive.

Harboring anger, bitterness, and a desire for revenge over justice is poison for our souls and detrimental to our walk with Christ. We must learn how to forgive. For their sakes, and for our own. Forgiveness is not approval, it is not acceptance of bad behavior, and it is not an endorsement of evil. However, failing to forgive can mean we are still trapped in the dark places that someone else has put us. Come to Jesus, and learn to be free.