Scripture
“Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.”
~Matthew 11:28, NIV
Quote
Every burden is a blessing.
~Walt Kelly
I might alter the quote just a little, “Every burden is a potential blessing.” Paul said in Romans 8:28, “We know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” We do know that God has the unique ability to make good come out of bad. Joseph was betrayed and sold into slavery by his own brothers. There is no question: his brothers were evil and what they did to Joseph was cruel and unjust but God took this awful situation and made something good come from it. As great as the story of Joseph is, the story of Jesus is greater: Caiaphas and the Jewish establishment were corrupt; evil through and through. What they did to Jesus was evil. Yet God took this sorrowful event and He made something beautiful from it because it fit His purpose. So God can turn a bad situation into a blessing.
Life can become a burden. Sometimes our problems cluster like ice on the wings of a jet; like Job, we are burdened. Burdens are heavy to carry and hard to shake. Sometimes we long for peace and rest and like David who said in Psalm 55…“Oh, that I had the wings of a dove! I would fly away and be at rest.” David knew the weight of a burden: he said in Psalm 40:12, “Troubles surround me, too many to count. My sins pile up high, I cannot see my way out. They outnumber the hair of my head; I have lost all my courage.” I am in agreement with David, the greatest burden I bear is due to my sin: mostly my pride. When I feel the heavy burden created by my own sin and failure, I accept Jesus invitation. He said, “If you have a heavy burden bring it to Me.” Of course Jesus invitation is not just to get rid of the burden we are carrying; to find the rest that we long for, we must yoke up with Christ. When the ancients were training an ox, they always put the younger, less experience in the yoke with a seasoned veteran. The larger, stronger, and more experienced oxen would pull most of the load. When we yoke up with Jesus, He takes our sin [burden] and He gives us direction, purpose and meaning. All we have to do is stay in step with Jesus.
I went over to see Pat Vanderfer yesterday {Sunday}. They have him in a room [474] and he is very sore and in a lot of pain due to all the broke ribs. The young man from the other wreck is about the same {critical condition}. Tina gave me his name and then I forgot it. We need to join hearts and hands in praying for this young man’s recovery. Kay Orr is having her gallbladder removed today so pray for Kay. I took a week off to try to get some things done but I will get back to my routine today. I did get a few things done, PTL but in my old age, I am slow. I am thankful for being able to work. Hey, I got four rows of corn planted. It almost got dry enough to cut the ditches. Have a great week and thanks for reading the blog.