Doing Things the Right Way ~ Life Lessons from Hand Weights

Part of my exercise routine involves hand weights. When I started I didn't own any, so I grabbed a couple of cans of pinto beans. Weak as I was, the one pound cans were about all I could handle. They were cumbersome, though. My hands are fairly small and they only wrap about two thirds of the way around the can.

Changing The Equipment

It was working, but I knew it was only a matter of time before it slipped out of my hand, crashed against the stone fireplace, and busted. The mental image of pinto beans splattered all over my living room sent me to the store for proper hand weights this week.

Have you ever shopped for hand weights? If you are really weak like me, you may have noticed something. One pound hand weights are rare and difficult to find. Eventually I gave in and bought two pound weights, dreading the next morning's workout before I even made it to the checkout line.

The next morning I wrapped my hands around the handles - my fingers touched! Amazing! I was able to grip the weights more securely which let me focus on the moves and correct positioning. When it got tough to keep going through the repetitions, I could squeeze the handles, feeling that much more determination to finish.

Noticing the Difference

After that first twenty minute workout a stunning thought occurred to me. It had actually been fairly easy to move up to two pound weights. Part of it was that I'm a lot stronger, but I was still struggling to lift the one pound cans through the entire motion, so it wasn't just that. I realized that having the right equipment let me execute the exercises more precisely, making it easier to lift the heavier weights.

Are we using the right equipment in our lives? What weighs you down? Some things weigh heavier on our spirit than other things and the biggest loads are different for every person. But the question remains the same - what are you using to lift it?

Thinking Bigger

By Rami Tarawneh via Wikimedia Commons

My husband uses a forklift occasionally at work. If he were to try to lift some of those barrels without the aid of machinery, well, he'd be unable to because they're bulky and weigh a couple hundred pounds. But if he tried, he'd likely hurt himself. (Since I know he's reading this, I'll tell him now - don't go move it without a forklift just to prove you can! I like your back in one piece, thanks.)

The right equipment makes such a difference in how much weight we can handle. When things weigh on our heart, are we handling them ourselves? Trying to fix them with advice from friends and family (or worse, Dr. Phil and Opera)? Or are we turning to the mega-forklift that can handle any weight at any time?

Turning It Over

When we use God to carry our burdens, He does all the heavy lifting. He teaches us how to drive the forklift, the right positions to use to avoid hurting ourselves, and spots us to hold the weight when we can't.

Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, so that He may exalt you in due time, casting all your care upon Him, because He cares about you. 1 Peter 5:6,7

What about you? Can you think of a time when God carried your burden? Maybe there's a time when you tried to carry it yourself and ended up hurt. I'd love to hear your stories. Share them in the comments below.


As a side note, I am also blogging over at Regency Reflections today. It is a devotion about motherhood.