Learning to CONSISTENTLY cast my cares on Jesus...to CONSISTENTLY lay burdens at His feet and LEAVE them there. Keywords: consistently and leave. (Oftentimes we will cast some cares on Jesus but continue to carry others. Many times we lay our burdens at His feet just to go back and pick them up again later. Jesus didn’t ask to babysit our burdens. He instructs that we release them to Him in full custody. We must cast all cares on Him and leave those burdens at His feet to never be carried by us again.)
Being as empathetic as I am, I find myself developing burnout and becoming emotionally fatigued more and more often as challenges not only arise in my life but the lives of those around me and in the world. Because of this, I’ve been learning more and more the importance of self-care and boundaries (physically, spiritually and emotionally). You have to be mindful of who/what you allow in your space. You have to be mindful of what you consume and how much of it.
I’ve found that a lot of the weight I’ve been carrying this year hasn’t even been my own. It’s been the burdens of others. I can’t be everything to everybody. Only God can be that. I am not God. I’m a fellow believer.
Don’t get me wrong, I love being a safe space for people to go to for advice, prayer or just a listening ear. (Shoot! My whole career is centered around counseling/therapy. It’s what I love to do and I believe I do it well.) However, balance is always necessary. As a sister in Christ, I’m to listen, support, encourage and pray BUT I am not be overcome by others’ burdens. I’m not even to carry my own. Galatians 6:2 says to “carry one another’s burdens.” I believe many read this as meaning we should take on the task of bearing the weight of and fixing one’s problems. I do not believe that’s so. If we could bear and heal another’s wounds, they wouldn’t need Christ - we wouldn’t need Christ either. My interpretation of that verse is to help lift others up physically and in prayer, help where possible and encourage them to seek Christ. We help alleviate their burdens by helping carry them to the only One Who can truly bear and fix them.
The Word tells us in 1 Peter 5:7 to cast our cares on Christ and Psalm 55:22 and Matthew 11:28-30 all speak to us about releasing our burdens to God. It’s not His will that we be crushed by carrying the weight of this world.
I repent for trying to be a “superhero.” I can’t save the world or the people in it, Christ has already handled that. What I can do and am instructed to do is guide/carry them to the feet of Christ that they may find rest for their souls in Him.
I’m casting my cares on Christ along with the cares of others that I’ve taken on over the years. It’s great to empathize with the pain of others and effectively intercede for them, but we should not take on the task of bearing their burdens. That’s the Lord’s job. What burdens/weights are you choosing to release to God today? Be free.
“Pour out all your worries and stress upon Him and leave them there, for He always tenderly cares for you.”
1 Peter 5:7
“Cast your burden on the Lord, and He will sustain you; He will never allow the righteous to be shaken.”
Psalms 55:22
“Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.””
Matthew 11:28-30
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