A little over a month ago, Carter broke his arm. I was amazed at how easily he adjusted to having a bulky cast on his arm. Within just a few days he was able to maneuver through his 2 year old world without much help from us. Of course, there were some adjustments that had to be made. He could no longer climb onto the furniture the same way; he had to sling his heavy arm up first then pull the rest of him up. He had to counter-balance himself when climbing stairs. Getting dressed presented quite the challenge. The car seat straps were often time consuming as well, but not impossible. But once he figured out his new way of doing things, however limited they were, he was still able to do life.

I can’t help but parallel Carter’s bulky cast to the weight of our bulky sin. As Christians, we are often going through life as usual and without much warning or notice on our part, sin sneaks in; maybe when we are busy or not paying attention. Oftentimes one sin grows into multiple sins or one sin grows into a habit or addiction. Before we realize what has happened, we start readjusting our lives to include the weight of this bulky addition. We are limited, yet life continues and we are able to maneuver through our world without much help from God or others. We still sing our praises on Sunday, go to all the right places, say all of the right things, but we fail to recognize the bulky cast that is covering the broken parts of our life.

When Carter woke up today and looked down at his arm, at first he wasn’t sure what had happened. He had gotten so used to the bulky cast that every action he took required him to make accommodations for it. Once we got home, he realized he had mobility again. He started bending his arm and using both hands. He wasn’t walking funny anymore. He could go up stairs without trying to balance his body differently. Putting on a shirt was a whole lot easier. His whole demeanor changed. He was laughing, playing, dancing…he was free.

If we don’t take the time to realize that the bulky sin has moved into our life, we may not recognize that we are compensating for it in other ways. Just like Carter’s cast became a part of his everyday life, un-addressed and unrecognized sin does the same thing. It’s so important to daily spend time with Jesus where we confess our struggles and weaknesses openly and readily; also time in his Word when he can speak to our heart. Life can get in the way sometimes, especially when we are filling it with “good” things, but neglecting the BEST thing-Jesus.

I want to challenge you to examine yourselves. Are you weighted down by a bulky cast of sin when you have already surrendered your life to the saving grace of Jesus? If so, you are missing out on the true freedom of complete surrender in every area of your heart. We don’t have to carry the bulky cast around anymore-that’s what Jesus died for, our sins. Lay your bulky sins at his feet and ask him to help you learn how to do life without the constraints of the bulky cast. Life doesn’t have to be heavy.