Devotions from Judy’s heart

Have you ever been burdened by someone else’s problems that weighed heavy on your heart and sapped your energy?  Did you wonder how much you are to carry?  I know I have struggled with this.  One day this week I walked over to the garden to weed and harvest tomatoes, beans, carrots and lettuce. As I was walking home, the bag with all the tomatoes and carrots was much heavier than the other one with the green beans and lettuce so was not balanced.  What came to mind were the verses from Gal 6 where it says that we should “carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.” But a couple verses farther on it says that “each one should carry his own load.”

How do we do both well?  I think we will always have people that would like us to carry their whole load and give us the responsibility of their well-being. But none of us can do that for another person, for we each have our own load to bear. God gives us the grace only for what He wants us to carry.. Each of us must go to the Lord and ask for His help. He often sends others that lighten the load but they don’t take the whole load. If that happens it throws us off balance and we are not able to handle it all. I had a dream once that I was pushing a wheelbarrow and it was weighted down with children. I could hardly push it and was so tired. When I woke up, I knew I was taking on too many of the burdens of those in our ladies’ class and they needed to minister more to one another than just coming to me. He has promised in Ps. 68 to “daily bear our burdens”.  Let us go to Him and point others to Him.