Feb 1, 2018 – Matt 23
Some tie up heavy
loads and put them on men's shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to
lift a finger to move them. Matt 23:4
Don't just tell
people what they need to do, show them and help them appropriately.
There’s an old story of a man who was walking down a dirt
road carrying a heavily-loaded pack, struggling to make progress. A farmer came along with his horse and wagon,
and offered the traveler a lift.
Gratefully, the traveler accepted the offer, and joined the farmer in
the back of his wagon. They traveled for
miles, and the farmer looked back noticed that the traveler still had the
luggage on his back, drooping down under its weight. The farmer suggested to the traveler: “Why
don’t you drop your load?” The
traveler responded: “I’d like to, but I can’t take it off alone.” The farmer replied: “Well I have helped you
with a ride, maybe someone else can help you take the load off.”
Truth is, the traveler didn’t need a ride as much as he
needed a lift.
Burdens are a funny thing.
Burdens are often visible: we can
see them on a person’s back. Burdens are
usually treatable: it’s easy to advise people they have a burden, and even tell
them why the burden is back there and how it got so heavy. But the problem is that burdens are
avoidable: while we may know all about them, we aren’t willing to help people remove
them from their back. In fact, sometimes
we even ADD burdens to people, and want them to figure out how to deal with
them on their own.
People carry burdens.
You cannot live this life without having a few burdens in your
life. In fact, the only way to grow and
mature is to learn how to handle burdens.
Burdens can create wisdom, grow strength, build character, and even
fulfill purpose. But burdens are not
supposed to be carried forever, and in some cases, not carried at all. The challenge with burdens is to get help on
ours, and help those of others.
Jesus said that “His yoke (of teaching) is easy, and His
burden is light.” Jesus also condemned
the Pharisees for putting burdens onto people that they themselves couldn’t
carry. We were not designed to carry
burdens alone, and we are not called to ignore the burdens of others. When you see people with a burden, it’s okay
to help them recognize how the burden got there, and teach them how to get rid
of it. But if you have the ability to
support them in removing their burden, then do so! Don’t just offer them a ride, lighten their
burden.
And remember, when you’re traveling with a burden, find a
person who will lighten your burden instead of just traveling the road. What you need is a lift more than just a
ride.
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