BURDENS DOWN
‘“Are you weary, carrying a heavy burden? Come to me. I will refresh your life, for I am your oasis. Simply join your life with mine. Learn my ways and you’ll discover that I’m gentle, humble, easy to please. You will find refreshment and rest in me. For all that I require of you will be pleasant and easy to bear.”’
Matthew 11:28-30
Aside from being busy, another thing that draws us away from God’s presence is heavy burdens. Sometimes we are weighed down by life. Maybe we’re going through a loss, dealing with pain or we have so much weighing on us that we cannot find strength or motivation to pray.
One of the heavy burdens I know people struggle with is meeting their daily needs. When you earn too little to provide for your family it can weigh a tone, Another heavy burden is unforgiveness and pain.
Too Heavy To Bear
I had a heavy burden in my heart when I went through grief. I felt like I couldn’t even breathe, how could I pray? How could I come to God and talk to Him? I stayed away from Him because that weight was too heavy. It was so serious that in those times when I turned on worship songs or tried to pray all I did was cry. I couldn’t get a word of prayer out because I was so hurt and pain in my heart had blocked every single space I could create for God.
The heavy burden in our hearts hinders our ability to build fellowship and consistency in our prayer life with God and draws strength from us. So to find strength and refreshing, we must let go of those heavy burdens.
Burden For Burden
Our text today tells us to come to Him with those burdens for an exchange –burden for burden. But this can be hard because most of us love our burdens. We are too familiar with the weight and we get anxious when it is time to surrender.
However, the only way you’ll be free is to bring your burden, drop it at Christ’s feet, and take up His burden. Our burden is unforgiveness and bitterness and pain. But His burden is love, that’s it. All He requires from us is to love him with all of our heart (Deut 10:12). That seems like a fair trade.
Love is a little burden compared to the worries of life, betrayal, jealousy, grief, fear, rejection, unforgiven, depression etc. Love is an easier burden. So if you’re struggling with any heavy burden, no matter what that burden is, now would be a good opportunity for you to begin to let them go.
Pray
Lord, I give you this burden, I cannot carry it anymore. Exchange them for your burden of love. I’m taking up your yoke that I am yours and I surrender the yoke of the world. (You see, the yoke of sin or the things in the world always takes from us, makes us feel ashamed and filthy before His presence. But His yoke that we are His and can come boldly to His throne makes us feel accepted, whole, and complete.)
So today, Lord, we drop our burdens before you and take up your burden of love. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
