Are You Bent Beneath Your Load?


Strength

“You are my light.

You are my strength.

You are my rock.

On you I stand.”

Tears filled my eyes as we sang those words in the Sunday morning worship service, but I choked them back and refused to let them fall- mainly because I knew I wouldn’t be able to stop if I started.  The song continued…

“I will believe you are strong enough.

In my weakness, God be lifted up.”

The tears fell from my eyes and rolled down my cheeks.  As the words to that chorus left my mouth, I simultaneously realized why that song had me so emotional.  I believed those words.  I really did.  But it suddenly occurred to me as I professed them through song that I hadn’t been living them.

My mind danced back to a verse God had given me earlier that week from the New Living Translation of Psalm 145, “The Lord helps the fallen and lifts those bent beneath their loads.”  That was the description of how I had been living.  Bent beneath my load.  So incredibly bent beneath my load.  I was a weary traveler who was carrying too much and doing it all in my own strength.

We do that though, don’t we?  We endure our circumstances, trudging through our daily routines and responsibilities, sometimes fighting to just get to the next thing on our to-do list.  From caring for our sick children all hours of the night to completing our work day with eyes that can barely hold themselves open, we pour ourselves out.  We help, give, respond to needs, give more, satisfy, protect, and fight for victory.  We keep going, keep giving, keep carrying the weight of the world on our shoulders…until…we can’t.  Then we find ourselves bent beneath our load and a blubbering mess right there in the middle of Sunday worship.

The problem is that sometimes we try doing our part, and God’s part, therefore relying on our own arm of flesh more than we rely on God.  Matthew Henry wrote, “God is displeased when he is distrusted, and when an arm of flesh is relied on, more than his power and goodness.  It is foolish to lean on a broken reed, when we have the Rock of ages to rely upon.”

If that’s not enough to convince us to quit doing God’s part in addition to ours, I don’t know what is.  Let’s look closely at Psalm 145:14-21.  God’s part is bolded and underlined so that we are sure not to miss it.

The Lord helps the fallen
and lifts those bent beneath their loads.
15 The eyes of all look to you in hope;
    you give them their food as they need it.
16 When you open your hand,
you satisfy the hunger and thirst of every living thing.
17 The Lord is righteous in everything he does;
he is filled with kindness.
18 The Lord is close to all who call on him,
yes, to all who call on him in truth.
19 He grants the desires of those who fear him;
he hears their cries for help and rescues them.
20 The Lord protects all those who love him,
but he destroys the wicked.

21 I will praise the Lord,
and may everyone on earth bless his holy name
forever and ever.

Do you see the connection between God’s part and the things I listed earlier that tend to weigh us down?  I don’t know about you, but when I find myself bent beneath my load, it’s because I am striving and killing myself trying to do all those things that we just underlined as God’s part!  God, help me to stop trying to do what only you can do.  Show me my part, Lord.

Look at those verses again, this time focusing your attention on our part.

The Lord helps the fallen
and lifts those bent beneath their loads.
15 The eyes of all look to you in hope;
you give them their food as they need it.
16 When you open your hand,
you satisfy the hunger and thirst of every living thing.
17 The Lord is righteous in everything he does;
he is filled with kindness.
18 The Lord is close to all who call on him,
yes, to all who call on him in truth.
19 He grants the desires of those who fear him;
he hears their cries for help and rescues them.
20 The Lord protects all those who love him,
but he destroys the wicked.

21 I will praise the Lord,
and may everyone on earth bless his holy name
forever and ever.

Suddenly our loads just got lighter.  Our part is so much more achievable, isn’t it?  I’m not saying that we don’t still have to satisfy the hunger of our children, be filled with kindness, or give of ourselves, but when we do our part, calling on God to help us, he will do his part through us.  

Lord, thank you for showing us our part.  We look to you in hope, Lord Jesus.  We call on you, Lord, and reverently fear you, looking for your hand in every part of our day.  God, we cry out to you for help.  We know we can’t do this without you.  And oh, Lord, how we love you.  We praise you Lord, and may everyone on earth bless your holy name forever and ever. Amen.

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