When the Burden Is Heavy
Cast your burden on the Lord, and he will sustain you; he will never permit the righteous to be moved. Psalm 55:22
Watching a squirrel trying to drag an almost full corn cob to its nest was rather comical. The poor thing tried and tried to haul it across the wintry, wet grass but was not making much progress. If this critter was capable of problem solving, I’m sure it would have figured it out quickly. Instead, it just kept trying.
Many times, I think we are quite like that persistent rodent. We are convinced that we can handle the problem and we set about trying this and that to obtain the required result. Sometimes we are successful but only after an unnecessary amount of effort and energy have been spent. Then we sit back and ask ourselves, “Now, why did I want or need this?”
God must shake His head in disbelief at some of our antics. I have to laugh at numerous things I have tried to do on my own. Why don’t we just ask for help? Is it embarrassment that blocks us from seeking assistance? Perhaps we don’t want to appear helpless or foolish! God already knows the situation. Instead, we wear ourselves out because we don’t seek His will from the get-go.
There is nothing too small that our Father doesn’t want us to share with Him. He is the burden barer, and He deeply loves us. He is compassionate and caring, so giving our every burden to Him is a natural. Right? I don’t know about you, but for me—it takes a while to turn to Him and holler, “HELP!”
God giggles! In my mind, I can hear Him saying, “What took you so long to get here? Give them all to Me because you are precious to Me. Relax, I’ve got this.”
Of course, squirrels have small brains and are not usually prone to logic. God takes care of His creatures. In case you are curious, the corn cob situation ended well. That little grey, hairy thing did figure it out. He kept eating away at the corn until he could handle the remaining weight and hauled it away easily.
Compassionate Lord, thank You for Your persistent care and love. Help us to remember who and what You are before we find ourselves in a pickle. AMEN.
Photograph: Michael Johnston