A Piggyback Ride from God

From my earliest days, I loved to have piggyback rides with my dad.  Who doesn’t?  That feeling of being able to see the world from a much higher viewpoint, while still being held safe and secure from falling  was unlike anything else.  Piggyback rides were even better when the “horsey” would gallop around the room.  The increased speed and bumpiness of the ride made it fun and exciting.  Even though I am too old and too heavy to ever qualify for a piggyback ride again, I still smile and chuckle with fondness whenever I see a dad giving a piggyback ride to his child. 

All of God’s children are on a piggyback ride with God, always. 

Maybe you didn’t have that kind of a dad, or maybe you didn’t know your dad at all.  I am so sorry that you missed out on the simple joy of galloping around the room, looking down on the world with a whole new perspective and laughing with glee.  But what you may not realize is that all of God’s children are on a piggyback ride with God, always.  Scripture tells us that!  So imagine the rides you had with your dad, or always wished you could have had, and then replace your dad with your Father, Abba.  What an amazing thought that is!

God is carrying His children from their birth to their old age. 

Although I can guarantee that the word “piggyback” doesn’t occur in the Bible, the idea behind it is there.  Listen to what God says in Isaiah 46:3-4 (NIV): “Listen to me, you descendants of Jacob, all the remnant of the people of Israel, you whom I have upheld since your birth, and have carried you since you were born.  Even to your old age and gray hairs I am he, I am he who will sustain you.  I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you.”  God is carrying His children from their birth to their old age.  You are never too old or too heavy to get a ride from God!

It is a picture of an innocent child trusting and delighting in the strength and love of a strong Father.

The original word for being carried here is nasa or nasah and it means to be lifted up or carried or taken, much like when a dad lifts a child up onto his shoulders for that ride around the room.  It is painting a picture of God lifting His children up, carrying them, and taking them to the places and plans He has for them.  Yes, I know there are many ways to be lifted up and carried – I just personally like the idea of a piggyback ride, high on the shoulders of God.  I think that it fits with how God sees our relationship with Him.  He lifts us up from our limited view of things and gives us a new, broader perspective.  He allows us to go in paths that are new and exciting and sometimes even dangerous, but they are never dangerous with Him because He is holding us tight.  He wishes for our hearts to be filled with joy and glee as we go through the ride with Him.  Most of all, it is a picture of an innocent child trusting and delighting in the strength and love of a strong Father. 

It is a beautiful statement of God’s faithfulness and love.

As with all Scripture, we need to be aware of the context of Isaiah 46.  It is written at the time the Israelites were in exile in Babylon.  This chapter is referring specifically to how God is so much bigger, caring, and much powerful than any idol man could ever make.  He made the children of Israel, He stayed with them no matter how they rebelled, and He will always be there providing for them.  It is a beautiful statement of God’s faithfulness and love to a hard-hearted, sinful people who turned from God over and over to worship pagan idols. 

When He carries us, He feeds us, cares for us, and makes us whole. 

The word nasah is used 635 times in the Bible and has a number of other meanings.  In some instances, it can mean being sustained, like how food can sustain us.  In other instances, it actually means forgiveness or exaltation.  A piggyback ride with God is no momentary entertainment!  It is a continuing journey of healing, love, and reconciliation.  When He carries us, He feeds us, cares for us, and makes us whole.  Even better, He never gets tired of giving us a ride.  We never have to get down off of His shoulders because He has other things to do or He is worn out. 

If this is a promise to the children of Israel, does it even apply to me?

The danger in reading verses like these is to take a single verse or two and try to make them apply to you in a way they were not applying in the time and to the people they were originally addressing.  So even though I am thinking about piggyback rides, I take very seriously the responsibility that we have to interpret Scripture correctly.  One of the first questions we have to ask is, “If this is a promise to the children of Israel, does it even apply to me?”

The promises He makes in Isaiah 46 are the promises the believers in Jesus can accept as true to each of them individually.

In many places in the New Testament, we are told that if we accept and follow Jesus, we are children of Abraham – we are made part of Israel and can receive the promises God made to them.  In Romans 11:11-24, Paul talks about an olive tree.  He calls Israel the natural branches while the Gentiles who believe in Jesus are the grafted-in branches.  Both the Israelites and the Gentiles are nourished by the roots of the tree, which are the promises that God has made.  Therefore, the promises He makes in Isaiah 46 are the promises the believers in Jesus can accept as true to each of them individually.

We can give all of our anxieties to God because He cares for us and will exalt us.

The next question we might ask is whether we are understanding what it means to be carried by God correctly.  After all, there is a long list of definitions for the word nasah.  So my next step is to see if there were any similar ideas in the New Testament that Jesus applied to His followers.  In a general sense, Hebrews 1: 3 talks about Jesus upholding all things.  But in a more personal sense, the first part of James, chapter 4, talks about people fighting, quarreling, and seeking after the things of the world.  Sounds a lot like Israel fighting, quarreling, and chasing after idols.  But then in verse 10, James promises that if we just humble ourselves before God, He will lift us up.  The word for lift here, hupsoó, means to be lifted up or exalted, meanings that the word nasah also shares.  Finally, 1 Peter 5:6-7 says that we can give all of our anxieties to God because He cares for us and will exalt us, which simply means He will lift us up.  And that sounds just like the promise that God gives to Israel in Isaiah 46. 

The beauty in Isaiah 46 is that God is so tender and near and concerned for us that He would carry us.

I don’t know how you like to envision God carrying you.  I love the idea of sitting up on His shoulders with a big smile on my face, taking it all in.  If you have a different way to view it, feel free to share it.  The beauty in Isaiah 46 is that God is so tender and near and concerned for us that He would carry us.  That is not how I used to see Him.  I used to think that I had to work so hard to make myself presentable to God, that if He ever did carry me, it was because I collapsed at the end of my days in sheer exhaustion!  I am so grateful that I was able to meet the God of grace, love, and compassion.  I am so grateful that I am never too old or too heavy for Him to carry.  I am grateful He works with us to lighten our burdens, just like Jesus said.  He makes our burdens easy and our yokes light (Matthew 11:28-30).  We just have to humble ourselves – make ourselves like that innocent little child that wants our Daddy to give us a ride.  Then we need to jump into His arms, or on His back, or even up on His shoulders – however we want to envision it – and let Him carry us.

My prayer for you today is that you can see in God’s words how He is constant and faithful and always yearning to take you in His arms and carry you.  I pray that you can feel joy and glee in the thought of riding through this life with your Daddy.   I pray that from His shoulders, you can see the broader view and feel the strength and safety of His sure and unending hold on you.  May the Prince of peace take your hand and carry you always.

I hope today’s message touched your heart, increased your understanding, and encouraged you.  Praying the peace and comfort of Christ Jesus on your life.