Bear a Burden, Share a Burden

Galatians 6:2 Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.

Day by day as believers we live our lives in the reality that our Lord is going to place a burden on us.  What is a burden?  A burden is a tremendous weight, life difficulty, circumstance, occurrence, event, calamity, hardship, weakness, insult, persecution that the Lord has decided to either place upon us or He has allowed Satan to “stretch out his hand against us (Job 1:11-12).  Burdens are on purpose.  Every burden has a purpose in Christ.  Either way, these burdens are not to be carried by us alone.  The Lord has given us the family of God, brothers and sisters in Christ to BEAR one another’s burdens.  It is our obligation (Romans 15:1) as believers to accept, carry, undergo, endure, provide for my brothers and sisters as they are struggling with living under the strong weight of the burden that is upon them.  Burdens cannot be and have never intended to be carried by one person.  Let us walk amongst our brothers and sisters looking for burdens to bear.  When we see someone drowning in burdens let us promise to engage them to bear their burdens so that they come up for a breath of hope, encouragement, edification, relief.  If we are the one drowning under the weight of a burden let us humble ourselves to be able to say, “I have a burden I cannot bear.”  This is our obligation in Christ and yet bearing one another’s burdens is a rare occurrence, even in the Church.

Father, thank You for brothers and sisters in Christ who are faithful to bear burdens.  Let us as the Church take this command and obligation serious.  You have given us each other so that we will not be alone with these burdens.  You are our hope through the obedience and empowering of the family of God.  Thank You Lord for Your loving, shepherding hand as you guide us into green pastures and still waters without burdens as well as the deep dark valley with heavy burdens.  For Your name’s sake let us, the Church, bear one another’s burdens. In Jesus name, Amen.