Strength for the Weary

Convo With God

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

Matthew 11:28-30 NIV (https://www.bible.com/bible/111/MAT.11.28-30

Last week, we spoke about taking a Sabbath, a day of rest. We spoke about spending time with God and resting, both mentally and physically. This week, we will talk about how we can avoid carrying the burdens of daily life. The burdens of daily life are always around us. However, they don’t have to be carried by us. When we carry our own burdens, it often leads to unnecessary fear and anxiety. We were not designed to carry burdens or deal with unnecessary fear and anxiety. God wants us to come to Him with our burdens, fears and anxieties.

Did you know that God wants us to talk to Him about what is burdening us? Did you know that we can give our worries to God? Let’s look at two verses in Scripture that deal specifically with this.

The first verse is 1 Peter 5:7 (NIV)

Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. (https://www.bible.com/bible/111/1PE.5.7.NIV)

The second verse is Philippians 4:6-7 (NIV)

Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

(https://www.bible.com/bible/111/PHP.4.6-7)

How do we give our burdens, fears and anxieties to God? We give our burdens to God in prayer. We can humbly ask for God’s help. We can surrender our burdens to Him and ask God to carry it for us.

When we ask God to carry (or even remove) our burdens, God will help us. God’s help for our individual situation can take many forms. Oftentimes, God gives us wisdom and understanding to make correct choices. God may also ask us to make lifestyle changes that are difficult. For example, if we are dealing with a health issue, God may give us wisdom on how to take care of our physical bodies. This may mean that we will need to follow an appropriate diet, exercise and sleep routine. Other burdens may be financial in nature. God may ask us to live on a budget, decrease our spending habits and build up savings.

Other times, our burdens maybe secondary to life choices that have made our life complicated. We need to simplify our lives and avoid situations that can make our life complicated. This requires that we spend time with God and seek his guidance and wisdom in our choices. Last week we spoke about unfruitful things in our lives that can be removed. When we remove the unfruitful things in our lives, we can allow fruitful things to take their place.

The year 2020 has its own unique burdens. The COVID-19 pandemic, social unrest and natural disasters come to mind. There is no one alive today who has not been affected by the events of this year. However, as believers, we know that we are not alone. 2020 has proven to us that we need to cast our burdens, (no matter how big or small) to God. It is difficult, (if not impossible), to deal with all the bad news around us by ourselves. However, when we lay our burdens before God and ask for His grace, He will give us the strength and courage to deal with our daily burdens. (see Philippians 4:13 and 2 Corinthians 12:9).

Let us pray.

Heavenly Father,

Thank You for everyone who is reading this blog right now. We pray for You to give us the grace to simplify our lives. We pray that we may have fruitful lives. Give us the grace to lay our burdens before You. Help us to have your peace that surpasses all human understanding. Strengthen us and encourage us during these difficult times. Help us to not give up but help us to persevere. We pray for you to bring deliverance and providence in all our lives.

We love you Lord, and we commit all these things into Your hands.

We ask all these things in Jesus name.

Amen

If anyone has not received Jesus as their Lord and Savior and wishes to do so, please say the prayer below:

Heavenly Father,

Please forgive me for my sins.

I invite you Jesus into my heart as my Lord and Savior.

Fill me with Your Holy Spirit. Help me to follow You.

I ask this in Jesus name.

Amen

Please feel free to email me with any prayer request at [e-mail]

Prayer request are always confidential.