One day an elderly man entered into a hospital. He was grumpy from 
being on medication and the nurse's thought him to be insane as he yelled for 
his wife to get the apple basket. By the time they had checked him into his 
room the nurses were exhausted from the fight he was putting up. "Sir you 
have to calm down we are doing everything we can for you" they would try to 
explain. "I don't need your help" the grumpy man would yell "I want my apple 
basket." Finally asleep the nurses sighed with relief and talked among 
themselves whether they should call the hospital psychologist about the old 
man and his obsession with the apple basket.

As they talked and laughed about the situation the wife came in 
carrying the basket of apples. They looked kind of stunned as she asked if 
she could see her husband and deliver his basket. Sure they agreed as they 
watched her slip past into his room. Curiosity consumed them over the next 
few weeks as they tended to the elderly man. He was eaten with cancer and the 
doctors had given him no hope of survival. He turned out to be a very calm, 
happy man once he had his basket. His wife they noticed would come in with 
apples and go out with apples and the curiosity grew even more till one nurse 
couldn't stand the suspense. 

One night as he was nearing the end, the nurse sat down in a chair by 
the wife. "May I ask why do have that apple basket?" "I just don't understand 
the significance?" "I am an apple farmer by trade he sighed, from the time I 
was 20 till the day I do die I will forever have my apples." The nurse nodded 
thinking she understood. He just likes his work she thought assured now he 
was a little bit crazy. As she started to leave the old man asked her to sit 
down. "At age 20 I was saved, I accepted the Lord as my Saviour." Oh no the 
nurse thought here comes the lecture on religion. The old man continued. 
"The day I accepted the Lord as my Saviour I got this basket and each time I 
had a problem or concern that I could not handle, I put an apple in the 
basket not-shined." "Why," the nurse said shaking her head. "Because it 
reminded me to give those problems to the Lord for Him to shine. See my 
basket now, he stated, as my problems disappear so do the apples as I get new 
problems, ones I cannot handle alone, I put an apple in." The humble nurse 
looked into the basket, only one apple was there. With that, he took a big 
breath and grabbed his wife by the hand and faded into eternal sleep. The 
wife paused for a moment and got up from her place to take from the basket 
the last remaining apple. She whispered in his ear that his reward awaits him 
in heaven. The nurse stayed still and asked with tears in her eyes, "What do 
you think his riches will be?" 

The wife knew what they were, eternal life with Jesus Christ. But she could 
see the concern and sadness upon the young nurses' face and handed her the 
apple and said "the biggest apple pie you can imagine!" 

That was the day the young nurse was saved and from that day on she 
always had a basket by her bed. You don't have to carry all the burdens of 
this world by yourself. Give them to God to ease your load. For he careth for 
you.

Author Unknown


Psalm 55:22 "Cast thy burden upon the LORD, and he shall sustain thee: he 
shall never suffer the righteous to be moved."