Jumbo, one of the largest elephants in captivity, was part of the Barnum and Bailey circus for a number of years. He was a gentle giant who used to give rides to children on his back. When Jumbo was captured as a baby, his owners would tie him to a stake to keep him from escaping. Since he couldn’t pull himself from the stake, he learned to remain where he was. As he grew, he became so strong and mighty that he was known to pick up massive trees with his trunk and uproot them from the ground. Yet, still, every night, his owners would tie him to this simple, tiny stake in the ground, and he never tried to escape. Why, when it would have been no problem at all for him to yank that stake from the ground and gain his freedom? Because he had learned when he was little that he couldn’t pull up the stake, and he continued in that belief well into adulthood.
Now, think of yourself as that tiny elephant. That’s you before you met Christ. That’s you when you were young in the faith, or when you didn’t really know God or understand His power, when your spiritual muscles were weak. Problems easily overwhelmed you, and your rudder got stuck in the mud. You couldn’t move. You couldn’t live the life God had for you because you didn’t know how to pull your rudder from the mud and sail away. You thought you were helpless. You didn’t know who God made you to be.
Do you realize that as a committed Christian, you are the child of the King of the Universe? Do you realize who your Daddy is? Do you realize the power He’s given you at your fingertips, the strength? the wisdom?
Nothing is impossible with God (Luke 1:37 NLT).
If God is for us, who can be against us (Romans 8:31NIV)?
I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me (Philippians 4:13 NKJV)!
Why are you standing there next to that tiny stake? Why are you allowing that same problem to keep your rudder stuck? Change your thinking. Seek God. Study His Word. Mature in your walk with God. You are a child of the King! Call upon the God of the universe, your Daddy, and flex your faith muscles, and then wait and see what He will do.
One of the biggest problems many Christians struggle with is unbelief. They simply don’t believe who they are in Christ. They are still encumbered with problems they’ve had since childhood, not realizing that God not only wants to set them free, but can set them free.
Don’t be like Jumbo. Wise up and free your rudder.
MaryLu Tyndall