You Were Not Made To Carry Your Burdens Alone
Are you carrying burdens that feel too heavy? Do you feel that you have tried and tried and it just doesn’t feel like you are getting anywhere? Do you feel stuck? I want you to know that you are not alone. Financial pressure, poor health, sickness of loved ones, death, divorce, loneliness, abuse, addiction and rejection. There are many people fighting some serious battles out there. I know you are weary. I know you are worried. I know you are battling to see the light, but hang in there. You are not meant to carry your burdens alone.
I was recently at a church service and the pastor put up a verse from John 21. That verse spoke so powerfully into my life that I barely heard any other message that morning. Allow me to share the message with you in the hope that it may help you too.
In John 21 Jesus had just been crucified. A handful of disciples decide to go fishing. They fished all night without so much as a bite. Early the next morning Jesus comes walking along the shore and asks the men if they have caught anything. The men don’t recognize him. Down and feeling super dejected they reply that they haven’t had any luck. Jesus suggests that they throw the nets on the right side of the boat which they do. Immediately there are so many fish they are worried the nets will break. The men immediately realise that their catch could only be the work of Jesus. Simon Peter flings himself off the boat to run in the shallow water towards his resurrected Messiah. Later that morning they count 153 fish!! From nothing to 153 fish!!
The moral of the story that slapped me in the face was this: if you try to carry your burdens on your own, you won’t get very far. Get Jesus involved in the same situation and your nets will runneth over.
Battling On Your Own May Feel Like Hard Work With No Result!
What I love about this story is that I can so identify with the disciples. How often do you feel like you are trying and trying and just not breaking through? Rejection after rejection. Failure after failure. But then Jesus comes along and changes the game. Suddenly they have more fish then they know what to do with!
My friend, if you are battling to see the wood from the trees, call out to the one who made you. He wants to bless you. He wants you to live a life of abundance. He wants you to be salt and light. You don’t need to carry your burdens alone. He will help you. Be still and talk with Him. Shout at him for that matter. Cry to Him. But whatever you do, turn to Him. And then listen when He whispers to you gently. He wants to tell you where to cast your nets so that He can bless you more than you could ever imagine.
Nice Story But Jesus Wouldn’t Help Someone Like Me.
“Nice story”, you may respond, “but those were Jesus’s disciples. They were His inner circle. Jesus isn’t interested in me. I am a sinner.”
There again my friend, you are wrong! Jesus was labeled the friend of sinners. He turned water into wine. You are his favourite type! He writes about you throughout the bible. The lost sheep. The lost son. The lost coin. He is seeking you out constantly, every second of every day, and the whole of heaven celebrates when you return to Him.
Jesus Can Handle Your Pain and Frustration.
Jesus has big shoulders. He created the universe in 7 days. Not only can he handle your pain, he wants to hear about it. Who of you have children and don’t want to help them in their pain? In the same way your loving Heavenly Father wants to listen, comfort and help you.
A life with only positive, happy things is not a real life. Jesus even tells us: “In this life you will experience trouble! But take heart. For I have overcome the world!”
It is interesting to note that over one third of the psalms are considered lamentations: people crying out to God about the pains, hardships and struggles of life, asking for his help and then praising Him for helping. A problem shared with our Father truly is a problem halved.
When I am weak, then I am strong.
God never used perfect people to accomplish his work. He used flawed people. He used you and I. Our weaknesses are made perfect in his strength.
Moses was a murderer, had a terrible stutter and did not want to lead the people. Abraham had a problem telling the truth. He and Sarah were old and couldn’t have children yet God used them to build a nation. Noah got drunk and passed out naked. Rahab was a prostitute. David was an adulterer and a murderer. Esther was an adopted orphan and Peter denied knowing Jesus.
God sees you in your weakness. He feels your pain. He sees your sin. And He still adores you. Just trust Him with your pain and weakness and He will use it for His Glory.
Jesus Loves The Details Of Your Life.
One of the things that I love most about the story in John 21 is that Jesus is all about the details of your life. This is the bit that literally gives me goose bumps. In the same way that he first recruited Simon, he also said goodbye.
In Luke 5, when Jesus first recruited Simon Peter to be his disciple, he asked him exactly the same question as he did in John 21 before he went to heaven: “How many fish have you caught?”
In Luke 5, Simon replies that they had been working hard all night but had caught nothing. Jesus told him to let their nets down in the deep water. They caught so many fish that their nets began to break. They filled two boats with fish which were so heavily laden that they began to sink. Simon was so overcome that he left his fishing life and followed Jesus.
Jesus’ story with Simon Peter started and ended the same way. Jesus is the alpha and the omega. The beginning and the end. Jesus knew Simon had a passion for fishing. He knew where the struggle was. And he met him right there. Twice. And He is waiting to do the same with you! He created you. And you will return to Him. In between: share the weight of your burdens with the maker of Heaven and Earth. I don’t know about you but I certainly could do with a bulging breakthrough of 153 blessings.
