The Ten Pound Brick
The Ten Pound Brick
BY KATHY PENROD
My childhood was full of swimming. Because, Arizona. We lived in the pools. I was at home in the water. Early on, my mom enrolled me in swimming lessons. After a few seasons of instruction, I progressed to the swim team and enjoyed competing in the water. After a few years on the swim team, I was ready to progress to the next step.
Lifeguarding.
I was thrilled at the prospect of being a lifeguard. I took the classes seriously and worked hard. Soon, it became time for the tests. I mastered the speed test, I learned how to carry in the water, I was competent in every skill.
Every skill, except one.
For the final test, we had to make our teenaged bodies tread water with a 10 pound brick above our head for one minute. It would count even if your nose was the only part of your head above water. You just couldn’t let your head sink all the way under.
With all my 100 pounds, I worked and practiced and worked some more. I did everything thing I could to strengthen my muscles. I could do the treading water easily. It wasn’t until I added the 10 pounds that I began to sink. Every day, I would coerce my sister to time me while I practiced in our pool. Every day, I would sink before the minute was up. No matter how hard I tried, as soon as I reached the 45 second mark, I would begin to sink.
Over time, I got slightly better and sometimes made it to 50 seconds. But the sad fact was that I just could not make my body stay afloat with that brick above my head.
It came time for the test and I prayed fiercely that I would succeed. I had practiced so much. But, as I hit the 50 second mark, my chin dipped under, then my mouth. I tipped my head back to keep my nose above water. But being a lifeguard was not what God had in mind for me and I slipped under water before the 60 second mark.
The thing is, I think I often still symbolically carry that brick around with me. Had I let go of the brick, I would have stayed afloat. How many times in my life am I trying to figuratively tread water with a 10 pound brick above my head? This time, there is no point to carrying the brick. All it does it weigh me down.
Some of the particles of that brick include lack of faith, negative self-talk, bad habits, grudges, despair, and so much more. And for some reason, I CHOOSE to carry it.
All through my life, all through my “treading water”, there has been One who will take that brick away from me. He will lift it from my sinking self and rescue me from going under. Just as He reached for Peter’s sinking frame, He reaches for me, ready to rescue. How often do I resist trading my burden for His.
Our dear Savior suffered in Gethsemane and on Calvary so you and I wouldn’t have to carry around heavy burdens. And He suffered not JUST for our sins, but for our sorrows and pains also. Everything I have packed into that theoretical brick of mine – He suffered for that.
The Savior’s loving invitation is:
“Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
“Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.
“For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light” (Matthew 11:28–30).
So, the trick is that I need to learn to give my brick away to Jesus. He will take it and trade it for His burden, which is light.
Elder Robert D. Hales teaches, “In the choices we make in life, we need to know the Savior. His simple admonition “Come … follow me” (Matthew 19:21) could transform human existence if we would let it. He has the power to make our burdens light if we will turn to Him.”
That is such a comforting truth. All that I carry around over my head, can be relieved. Life involves a lot of figurative treading of water. Wouldn’t it be much better to not have that blasted brick above my head? And the beauty of this is, even without the heavy brick of my burdens, maybe especially without them, I will win the day. I will succeed.
So the next time you are tempted to carry around a brick, remember that Jesus is waiting there to take it from you. Drop to your knees and beg for the Grace He has promised and joy in the weight being lifted from your arms.
