Cast your burden on the Lord
Have you ever wished that you could just throw off difficulties and problems,
that you could be freed from your cares?
“Cast your burden on the LORD, and He shall sustain you” (Psalm 55:22).
Thus, you can! Our cares may be transferred to God. He will take
care of us. We may place our trust in Him.
But often, we do not. We tend to be like the vagabond who
was walking along the road with a heavy burden on his back. A
farmer with a horse and wagon stopped and called: “Friend, climb in the
back. I’ll take you to town.”
With much gratitude the heavily loaded man climbed in the back of the
wagon.
After a while, the farmer noticed that his passenger, although he was sitting
in the wagon, still had his heavy load on his shoulder. He called:
“Friend, lay your burden down. Why are you still holding it on your
shoulder?”
The man replied: “I thought it might be too heavy for the wagon.
So I kept it on my shoulder.”
We are often like that. We come to the Lord for salvation, but
think we must carry our own load.
Cast “all your care upon Him, for He cares for you” (1 Peter
5:7).
Jesus said: “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden,
and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28).
We can rely on God: “Trust in the LORD forever, for in the
LORD JEHOVAH is everlasting strength” (Isaiah 26:4 KJV).
Often, rather than trusting God, we depend on something that is not trustworthy.
The Scriptures warn us not to place our trust in the wrong things .
We may not trust in our own understanding.
“Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and lean not on your
own understanding” (Proverbs 3:5).
Sometimes God allows us to experience difficulties so we will learn to place
our trust in Him. Paul wrote: “For we do not want you to
be ignorant, brethren, of our trouble which came to us in Asia: that
we were burdened beyond measure, above strength, so that we despaired even of
life. Yes, we had the sentence of death in ourselves, that we should
not trust in ourselves but in God who raises the dead” (2 Corinthians
1:8, 9).
We may not place our trust in man.
“It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in
man. It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence
in princes” (Psalm 118:8, 9).
“Thus says the LORD: Cursed is the man who trusts in man and
makes flesh his strength, whose heart departs from the LORD. For he shall
be like a shrub in the desert, and shall not see when good
comes, but shall inhabit the parched places in the wilderness, in a salt
land which is not inhabited. Blessed is the man who trusts in the
LORD, and whose hope is the LORD. For he shall be like a
tree planted by the waters, which spreads out its roots by the river,
and will not fear when heat comes; but its leaf will be green,
and will not be anxious in the year of drought, nor will cease
from yielding fruit” (Jeremiah 17:5-8).
We may not place our trust in military might.
“Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help, and rely on
horses, who trust in chariots because they are many, and in horsemen because
they are very strong, but who do not look to the Holy One
of Israel, nor seek the LORD!” (Isaiah 31:1).
We may not place our trust in riches.
“He who trusts in his riches will fall” (Proverbs 11:28).
“Command those who are rich in this present age not to be haughty,
nor to trust in uncertain riches but in the living God, who gives
us richly all things to enjoy. Let them do good, that they be
rich in good works, ready to give, willing to share, storing up for
themselves a good foundation for the time to come, that they may lay
hold on eternal life” (1 Timothy 6:17-19).
If we trust in God we can be free of fear.
“He will not be afraid of evil tidings; his heart is steadfast, trusting
in the LORD” (Psalm 112:7). “Whenever I am afraid, I will trust in
You. In God (I will praise His word), in God I have put
my trust; I will not fear. What can flesh do to me?” (Psalm
56:3, 4). “Behold, God is my salvation, I will trust and not be
afraid; for the LORD GOD is my strength and song; and He has
become my salvation” (Isaiah 12:2 NASB).
We may trust, even when things seem bad.
We can follow the example of Daniel’s three friends: “Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-Nego
replied to the king, ‘O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to give you
an answer concerning this matter. If it be so, our God whom we
serve is able to deliver us from the furnace of blazing fire; and
He will deliver us out of your hand, O king. But even if
He does not, let it be known to you, O king, that we
are not going to serve your gods or worship the golden image that
you have set up’”
(Daniel 3:16-18 NASB). Because of their example of trust, Nebuchadnezzar believed in God.
At first he said: “What god is there who can deliver you out
of my hands?” (Daniel 3:15 NASB). What does he say later? “Nebuchadnezzar responded
and said, ‘Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-Nego, who has
sent His angel and delivered His servants who put their trust in Him,
violating the king's command, and yielded up their bodies so as not to
serve or worship any god except their own God” (Daniel 3:28 NASB).
When we trust in God, we receive grace.
“Many sorrows shall be to the wicked; but he who trusts in the
LORD, mercy shall surround him” (Psalm 32:10). “We trust in the living God,
who is the Savior of all men, especially of those who believe” (1
Timothy 4:10). “He who believes and is baptized will be saved” (Mark 16:16).
Do not try to carry your own load .
“Cast your burden on the LORD, and He shall sustain you” (Psalm 55:22).
Cast “all your care upon Him, for He cares for you” (1 Peter
5:7).
Roy Davison
The Scripture quotations in this article are from
The New King James Version. ©1979,1980,1982, Thomas Nelson Inc.,
Publishers.
Permission for reference use has been granted.
Published in The Old Paths Archive
(http://www.oldpaths.com)
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