Bible Reading: Psalm 55; Revelation 11: 1-19
“Cast thy burden upon the Lord, he shall sustain thee: he shall never suffer the righteous to be moved” – Psalm 55:22 (KJV).
In the previous lesson we learnt that God is our helper, he is a very present help in times of need. We learnt that we do not have to live like orphans in the presence of a loving and caring father who invites us to cast our cares and burdens on him for he cares. As we build upon that lesson today, we will learn how not to carry our burden by ourselves. Our shoulders are not designed to carry much burden. There is a stronger shoulder that wants to help us carry our load of cares.
Life is full of cares; what we shall eat, how to pay our bills and all the concerns of life, plus the load of sin, sickness and servitude. The reason Jesus came from heaven is to help us with these loads that weigh us down. Sin and the fall of man have brought untold pain to humanity, but God in his love and mercy has come to help man bear these loads. How often we make the mistake of trying to lift our loads all by ourselves to qualify us for God’s acceptance. How often we try to lighten the load so as to help God carry the remaining.
How often we embrace God’s offer of salvation from sin and the wrath of God but fail to yield to the lordship of Jesus in every aspect of our lives. How often we receive the Holy Spirit but fail to allow him help our infirmities. How often we stay in Christ but bear our load on our shoulders.
This reminds me of a young man that met an elderly man sobbing under the weight of load on his head. On seeing this old man, the young man stopped his car to help him. The old man was so grateful to have found such a helper. The younger man opened the door for the papa to enter but papa (the old man) failed to let down his load from his head. As the young man drove for few kilometers, he continued to hear noise of one sobbing from behind. On looking back, he was shocked to see that papa was sobbing from the weight of the load on his head.
When he asked papa while he still had the load on his head, papa’s reply amazed him: “son, you have helped me by carrying me, I didn’t want to bother you with my load”. Jesus wants to carry you and your load of care.
PRAYER: Dear Lord, I cast my cares upon you.
Rev. Vincent Diolu