You Don’t Have To Bear It Alone

Burdens. A word with a negative note and something we all do not wish to encounter. Yet, burden is a part of our living, and it is crucial to us. Especially for children of God, in order to experience Emmanuel and God’s presence in our lives, we need the “refining fire” of burdens. Psalm 66:10-12 “For you, God, tested us; you refined us like silver. You brought us into prison and laid burdens on our backs. You let people ride over our heads; we went through fire and water, but you brought us to a place of abundance.” And in 1 Peter 1:6-7, it says “In all this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed.” Many times, believers cannot experience Emmanuel because they did not bear their crosses. In other words, it could be because we did not humbly put ourselves down and cast our burdens to the Lord. God does not let us go through the refining fire to incinerate our faith but to bring us into a state of submission, reliance and trust in the Lord’s sovereignty over our difficulties. Then will our faith be increased, our lives be exalting God until the day Christ comes again. And when we are bearing the cross of our lives while casting our cares to the Lord, our burdens will be lighter. So how does the Lord carry our burdens for us?

The Lord has already bore our sins
Firstly, we have to know that the Lord has already bore all our sins- past, present and in the future. 1 Peter 2:24 says ““He himself bore our sins” in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; “by his wounds you have been healed.” Brothers and sisters, have you personally experienced the Lord carrying your sins for you? How did He bear them? Some may think that God bearing our sins means that we are no longer condemned, therefore we may enter Heaven. However, if one only thinks this way, we will not truly be liberated from the sins that will keep coming at us while we are in this world. Actually, to have the Lord bear all our sins is to have him bear the state of our spirits that is constantly being tormented by sins. What kind of state is this? Well, our spirit is amazing. If we start to think that our future circumstances may not be desirable, we will start to think in that direction and it will gradually affect our relationships with others, developing jealousy, conflicts and more. Then when we feel wronged, or when matters of our hearts are not resolved, we will tend to use a worldly perspective to analyse our situation, source our solutions and laws to take care of things. However, even if we may temporarily settle one issue, our hearts may still have lingering fears or insecurities that new problems may resurface. Thus, the state that sins put us in is one that always cause our spirits, environment and relationships to deteriorate. Only through the sinless Lord Jesus, who went though great pain and suffering, being shamed and tormented. Only the Lord who has carried all the sins of men through the fulfilment of being nailed on the cross can bear every burden of your lives. But how can we allow the Lord to carry our sins? That is through the word of God, understanding it, confessing our limitations and weaknesses, and from there, we see that “every hour we need Thee, Lord.” When we keep staying close to God’s leading, we will receive the liberation we need from our wearied and burdened states.

The Lord has personally bore our worries
1 Peter 5:7 says “Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.” Now brothers and sisters, what is the anxiety that God wants to bear for us? It is the kind of anxiety that always cause us to feel lack in some areas of our lives. For example, certain weaknesses, inabilities, having no direction in life, financial difficulties, disobedient children, loneliness, not receiving help from a long-standing problem, hectic lifestyle, lack love for people around you, losing faith or perseverance, health issues and many many more. All these can cause us different levels of anxiety in our lives. The truth is, the Lord has already given us many promises. But if we do not cast our worries to Him, turning our full reliance on Him, seeking His counsel in prayers and only pursue our own satisfaction and using our own might to zero in on our problems, when the day of Judgment comes, we will not be able to stand firm. Thus, the Lord calls to our mind the importance of casting all our cares on Him everyday. How do we cast it all on Him? That is to rely on the promises of God and the guidance of the Holy Spirit. Only when we rely on God’s faithful and unshaken promises, abiding by His word, keep our eyes on matters above, will we be able to see and experience the abundant grace, love that turns our anxieties into a peaceful and hopeful heart.

The Lord Himself carries our entire life

Finally, the Lord Himself carries our entire life. How does He carry us? Does He do so by resolving every struggles we are stuck in? Exodus 19:4 says “‘You yourselves have seen what I did to Egypt, and how I carried you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself.” Now, our lives will always be attacked by the world and Satan’s influences. But the Lord is like the eagle, swift, accurate and powerful in carrying us, rescuing us, and empowering us to soar on wings like eagles ourselves, run and not grow weary and walk but not be faint. Psalm 94:18 says “When I said, ‘My foot is slipping,’ your unfailing love, Lord, supported me.” Perhaps, sometimes we may lose our footing in life. Let’s say, when a situation seems impossible to salvage, or we lose hope and faith etc, but God’s unconditional and persevering love is a strength that sustains and upholds us all our lives, right to the end. In other words, it is the Lord’s grace that carries our entire lives, and not by our own striving, solutions and efforts. Of course, God calls us into all the task and roles in our lives, but this should all done with a blessed perspective that sees God above all of it and being the driving force behind it. This takes us off the emotionally and physically exhausting ride of carrying all the burdens on our limited self, and drawing strength from the limitless Christ.

Dear brothers and sisters, even though we each have our own cross to bear, but if we surrender our many worldly desires, solutions and inclinations, and let God take charge in carrying our every burden, even if we go through the refining fire of trials, we will surely be sanctified in the process. Our spirits will be at rest and we will be able to personally experience the love, presence, grace and perfect will of God’s works fulfilling in our lives.