Not Meant to Shoulder Alone

Give all your worries and cares to God, for He cares about you. – (1 Peter 5:7, NLT)

Let Him have all your worries and cares, for He is always thinking about you and watching everything that concerns you. – (1 Peter 5:7, TLB)

Pour out all your worries and stress upon Him and leave them there, for He always tenderly cares for you. – (1 Peter 5:7, TPT)

 

This is a timely reminder, as school feels really heavy right now. The academic demands feel unapproachable to some, and the behaviors displayed in response, disrupt and distract, making the teaching process extremely challenging. Inadvertently, I begin to carry the weight of the worry as to how to help all kids learn and grow. Though it is critical that I care, it is not my burden to bear alone. First and foremost, I need to give the weight of the worry and stress to the Lord, and allow Him to hold the heaviness. Second, I must ask for what I need. If it is strength or clarity or perspective, God is faithful to meet us where we are. When it is a tangible need that can be met in the moment by a colleague or simply by creating a built-in break, then each avenue ought to be utilized. May we cast all our cares to the Lord, for He is able and willing to walk us through, bearing the weight we are not meant to shoulder alone.

 

When worry and stress,

Photo by Dee Jones of Open Door Photography ❤

Begin to weigh down;

Give all to the Lord,

In Him, help is found.

Help in our struggles,

Strength when we feel weak;

In love and in grace,

He answers who seek.

So, go to the Lord,

With stress and concern;

He’s ever for us,

Unto Him, let’s turn.

 

Dear Heavenly Father, thank You that we are not meant to bear the weight of the world on our shoulders. Thank You that we can come to You and give You our worries and cares, and You will shoulder the weight and grant us the help we need to navigate whatever we face. Forgive us for attempting to bear heavy burdens on our own, rather than running to You. Teach us to trust You more, as You are our strength and peace, no matter what storm we face. Show us how to love those around us in a way that provides help, peace and hope in the places where stress or anxiousness were weighing heavily on their heart. May many come into a lasting relationship with You. Be glorified O God, as we give all of our worry and stress to You, and trust You to be our strength. Amen.

 

 

© Shannon Elizabeth Grabrick and Revelations in Writing, May 2011 – present

 

Praise be to the Lord, to God our Savior, who daily bears our burdens. – Psalm 68:19

The Gift of Generosity

The generous will prosper; those who refresh others will themselves be refreshed. – (Proverbs 11:25, NLT)

Give freely, and you will profit. Help others, and you will gain more for yourself. – (Proverbs 11:25, ERV)

The one who blesses others is abundantly blessed; those who help others are helped. – (Proverbs 11:25, MSG)

 

The kingdom of God does not operate according to the rules of man. In our own limited understanding, living a life of generosity and helpfulness is almost counter-intuitive. If one is trying to get ahead, giving one’s time, resources and energy does not necessarily make sense. However, in God’s economy, this is the very way things work. The last shall be first. We gain life when we give ourselves away. He blesses as we bless others. When our motivation is otherly, we somehow end up being blessed in the process. God does something remarkable when we take our attention off of ourselves and focus on those around us. Somehow, whatever seemed to weigh us down, no longer holds as much significance when we choose to be generous with others. Often seeing those we were able to walk beside flourish, is the very blessing our heart needed most. May we choose to give freely and help others in this sacred season, as the Lord refreshes us as we honor Him.

 

Let us give freely,

Choose to help and bless;

For through our giving,

His peace we possess.

The God of all grace,

Refreshes our hearts;

As we bless others,

His life He imparts.

May love lead the way,

Generosity;

So all might see God,

And come to believe.

 

Dear Heavenly Father, thank You that Your ways are far above our ways. Thank You that when we give of ourselves, You meet us and refresh us and never leave us depleted. Thank You that You call us to live generously, as You are overwhelmingly generous with us. Forgive us for not giving freely of our time, resources or ourselves as You call us to do. Teach us to trust You more, so that we would rise up and help where we see need that You have given us wisdom, resources or grace to meet. Show us how to love those around us as You would love, so that Your light and life would be abundantly clear through us. May many come into a lasting relationship with You. Be glorified O God, as we give, help and love others as You have done for us. Amen.

© Shannon Elizabeth Moreno and Revelations in Writing, May 2011 – present

And the Lord said, “I will cause all my goodness to pass in front of you.” – Exodus 33:19

The Race Marked Out for Us

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. – (Hebrews 12:1)

 

Each and every one of us has our own race that we are called to run. Our race is not a sprint, but rather it is a lifelong marathon. We are called to run a race full of obstacles and challenges that we must take on with trust in Him, in order to keep moving according to the course He has set before us. The great cloud of witnesses that surround us, are those who have gone before us and successfully run their own race. They too had to keep running, regardless of weather, terrain, or how they felt. The things that hinder us, are those burdens that weigh us down and make moving unbearable. God wants us to travel light. His intent is not for us to run our race weighted with an extra-heavy load, but rather for one that is custom crafted and appropriate and proportionate for us. Additionally, as we run, there are many temptations that attempt to steer us off course. Our charge is to stay the course, and not allow such sin to entangle, as they easily trip us up and steal the security of our footing. May we rise up ready each day and keep running with perseverance, the race marked out before us, throwing off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles.

 

This wearying road,

has been run before;

despite obstacles,

from mountain to shore.

The very same God,

from the days of old;

will walk alongside,

give strength to uphold.

Let not the burdens,

keep us from our race;

His hands are outstretched,

He died in our place.

Beware of the sin,

that attempts ensnare;

diverting our eyes,

from Him, over there.

Instead, let us keep,

our hearts ever near;

dependent on Christ,

let us persevere.

 

Dear Heavenly Father, thank You that there are so many examples of those who have run their race with perseverance before us, and successfully finished fighting the good fight of faith. Thank You that You invite us to throw off everything that hinders us, warn us of those things that would attempt to entangle us, and strengthen us to persevere all the while. Forgive us for allowing our baggage to weigh us down, the things around us to divert our attention away from You, or our trust to simply sag, where it needs to rise up and run strong. Teach us to trust You more, so that we will seek You first in all things, and that we will be well-equipped to run our race with perseverance, daily. Lead us to love others consistently and generously, just as You love us. May many come into a lasting relationship with You. Be glorified O God, as we run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Amen.

© Shannon Elizabeth Moreno and Revelations in Writing, May 2011 – present.

Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy. – Hebrews 4:16