Burdened Down

Interestingly, in Galatians 6:2, we read, "Carry each other's burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ," which clearly says we are to share the weight of each other's burdens.  But then, in verse 5, Paul says, "carry your own load."  So, is it share in carrying burdens or is it each one carry his/her own?  Yes!

Yes, we are to carry our own load.  In fact, Paul will elsewhere say, “The one who is unwilling to work shall not eat" (2 Thess 3:10).  The one unwilling to pitch in and carry his/her own weight is to be allowed to go hungry long enough to provide sufficient motivation to pick up his/her own load.

However, there are times when our burden is too heavy to carry alone, when we become burdened down, crushed under the weight of what we must now bear.  James tells us that "Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world" (1:27).  An accident, an illness, a financial collapse, or any number of crisis points in our lives can render us "burdened down" to the point we can't carry it alone.

Do you recall Jesus' words in Matthew 11:28-30, "Come unto me all who are heavy burdened and I will give you rest..."  In that passage, just after saying he would give us rest he says, "take my yoke upon you."  Really, how does that help?  His is a double yoke.  The heavy burdened was already in a yoke, pulling a burden too heavy for him/her alone.  Jesus doesn't offer to carry the burden for us, he invites us to get in a double yoke with him so he can help us pull our over-burden.

This is the synthesis of carry your own load and carry each other's loads: carry your own weight until it reaches a point when you are burdened beyond your capacity, then allow others to come along side of you to assist in that load until it is manageable again.  If you see another bending under the weight of their burden, extend your help if you are able.

Have you ever heard of "barn-raising"?  It used to be so that when a young man was starting out in farming or if a fellow farmer's barn burned down, the other farmers in that community would come together and help him build a barn.  The Amish still practice it.  The other day, I was privileged to help build a "Habitat For Humanity" house - a kind of barn-raising and certainly the practice of helping a family who has become burdened down in life.

So, readily carry your own load until your load brings you to your knees and then gratefully accept the help of others until you can get back on your feet.  And, then, be ready to help someone else who you see burdened down.  Jus' Say'n.