“Cast thy burden upon the LORD, and he shall sustain thee: he shall never suffer the righteous to be moved.” - Psalm 55:22
We have in this very simple verse some profound strengthening for the day, for the week or for the years.The timing of when this verse impacts you is not up to me; nor is it up to you.You may merely need these words to undergird you for what comes your way in the next twenty-four hours.It is possible that these statements of Scripture may be necessary for you from today and unto weeks ahead.I will confess to you that these truths have been my own strength on a daily basis for nearly two years.May I break it down for you today?
A command – I am herein told by God what to do with that which burdens me.He does not ask me to rearrange my burden so that I may carry it a little further.No advice is granted concerning how to position myself properly under it in order to stand longer.God tells me to drop it at His feet.Even stronger, I am told to cast it upon Him.Utilize the last of your strength to unburden yourself in holy obedience by flinging that too-great-of-a-thing upon God Almighty.Seeking to prove your ability by going a step further is nothing but disobedience.Not wishing to trouble the Master is pride posing as piety.God’s word indicates that there comes a time when the burden has gotten the best of you that you must use holy discernment to recognize that it is time to admit that you are not fit for it.You win by virtue of your weakness.Give that thing to Him as He commands.
A comfort – We most often wish for deliverance above and beyond a sustaining.Whole ministries are founded upon the truth that God delivers.Conspicuously absent are ministries who declare that God also sustains.Is there not glory in both?We are conditioned to believe that true victory is only found in the problem disappearing.The absence of pressure, pain, discouragement, depression, persecution, misunderstanding and resistance – the absence of these things is the narrow definition of victory.Yet would we not rob God of His due to fail to be comforted that He may leave some lingering trouble in order that we may experience the depth of His sustaining grace?He says in the verse above that, when we roll our burden upon Him, He shall sustain us.Whatever dent the heaviness has left upon us, God will administer both comfort and power.Jacob walked with a limp – but, indeed, he walked.David’s failures as a husband, father and king haunted him unto the grave.Yet his glory goes on today.Paul seemed to wrestle with the damage he inflicted upon Christ’s bride in his pre-conversion persecutions.Was not Paul the greatest champion of Christ to have ever lived?Yes, we are dented, damaged and often drained.But I awoke today to see that another sunrise would reveal that I am still sustained by Omnipotent Love.
A commitment – He shall NEVER allow His righteous ones to be removed.There is a point on your horizon where you will truly believe this.I have an elusive trust in a promise like this.I would be eager to post that I never struggle with the concept of NEVER being moved but I do not wish to deceive myself or the reader.When we truly believe this commitment from God we will experience a relief from dread and fear to a degree that we never have before.The ultimate reason that we fear is due to the fact that we truly believe that some things are greater than God.Enemies.Sickness.Loved ones.Hurts.Financial woes.Persecution.Earthquakes.Our own sin.The list might well go on forever because there is no shortage of things that we fret over.God has stopped being immense to many of us.He’s a wisp of spiritual thought floating around our minds.He’s a dissipated thought that floats on the currents of our emotions.He no longer thunders as He seemed to during days when we didn’t quite sense our need to be sustained.Now He is entrusting you with things that threaten to move you.These things growl at you.They hiss in your direction and you interpret that hiss to signal that a defeat is your destiny.God still says, “NEVER!”The problem, if there is one, lies in the fact that we improperly define victory.For most of us, the process of victory is never enough.We seem not to breathe easily until we drop anchor in the harbor of happiness.Until then we grind our teeth away, close our eyes tight, and wish much more often than we pray.This is when I am so grateful for the inspired reminder which instructs, “If we believe not, yet he abideth faithful: he cannot deny himself.” (2 Timothy 2:13).He promised it so I assure you that is what settles it.
I love you today.I thank God for the privilege of potentially encouraging you today.I point you to Him and encourage you to acknowledge the weakness that welcomes the sustaining.Consider whether or you might already be a possessor of triumph in that His abiding strength has allowed you to see another day of grace.The anchor will indeed drop in the harbor of happiness some day.Let us please honor our Captain by appreciating the voyage which gets us there.
When I hear you preaching the sincere word of God I am reminded of sermons of Charles Spurgon. When at that time, England was loosing their influence over the world in the 1850's as America is loosing their influence in the 2000's.
Many preachers then preached other things that tickled the ears of worshipers then such as now.
I would like to encourge you to keep reading the faith of the Godly men of the 1500's and 1600's.
Such as Matthew Henry, John Calvin, Martin Luther, John Flavel, John Knox. 1700, John Edwards who preached "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God." In the 1800's Charles Spurgon. A W Tozer and A B Simpson. In the 1900's A W Pink.
I hope you never stop preaching the sincere word of God.
