"Cast your burden on the Lord, and He shall sustain you; He shall never permit the righteous to be moved." (Psalm 55:22)
The margin of the NASB says, "Cast what He has given you." Sort of changes our old concept of this verse, doesn't it?
Maybe there is a connection here with what Jesus told us, "Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls." It seems to me that the guarantee, "He shall never permit the righteous to be moved," is to those who have received that which Jesus has given us, then give it back to Him. Notice key words and phrases in the Matthew text quoted above:
"Come to Me"
"I will give you"
"Take My yoke" (Literally, "heavy burden")
"Learn from Me"
The call to follow Jesus is a call to, "My yoke," and that, "yoke," is a heavy one. Just a few moments of considering Jesus' commands, observing Jesus' life in the Gospels and it does not take a "spiritual genius" to see that this, "burden," this, "yoke," is heavy, one which no one could/can ever carry. In short, you and I just cannot live the life to which Jesus calls us without casting (or, "to fling, cast away") that, "burden/yoke" back upon Jesus. In reality it is casting ourselves upon Jesus, "Lead me to the rock That is higher than I."
Now the "how-to" I really cannot say. Perhaps we can start with, "Lord Jesus, I cast what You have given me upon You." This is an act of surrendering all that Jesus has given us, through His grace, to Him alone. Jesus told us to, "Abide in Me." I simply know no other way of life.
Father, in Jesus' Name, I, "cast my burden upon," You. Show me more and more just "how" I can do this. Amen.
*****************************
I will be in Washington, DC, next Wednesday, December 17, praying on site. Also at 17:00, I will be attending a Helsinki Commission (Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe) seminar on the issue of human rights in Belarus.
The margin of the NASB says, "Cast what He has given you." Sort of changes our old concept of this verse, doesn't it?
Maybe there is a connection here with what Jesus told us, "Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls." It seems to me that the guarantee, "He shall never permit the righteous to be moved," is to those who have received that which Jesus has given us, then give it back to Him. Notice key words and phrases in the Matthew text quoted above:
"Come to Me"
"I will give you"
"Take My yoke" (Literally, "heavy burden")
"Learn from Me"
The call to follow Jesus is a call to, "My yoke," and that, "yoke," is a heavy one. Just a few moments of considering Jesus' commands, observing Jesus' life in the Gospels and it does not take a "spiritual genius" to see that this, "burden," this, "yoke," is heavy, one which no one could/can ever carry. In short, you and I just cannot live the life to which Jesus calls us without casting (or, "to fling, cast away") that, "burden/yoke" back upon Jesus. In reality it is casting ourselves upon Jesus, "Lead me to the rock That is higher than I."
Now the "how-to" I really cannot say. Perhaps we can start with, "Lord Jesus, I cast what You have given me upon You." This is an act of surrendering all that Jesus has given us, through His grace, to Him alone. Jesus told us to, "Abide in Me." I simply know no other way of life.
Father, in Jesus' Name, I, "cast my burden upon," You. Show me more and more just "how" I can do this. Amen.
*****************************
I will be in Washington, DC, next Wednesday, December 17, praying on site. Also at 17:00, I will be attending a Helsinki Commission (Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe) seminar on the issue of human rights in Belarus.
When Peter, an 18 year old Norwegian, "heard the call to evangelize China, on that day he not only emptied his wallet into the collection plate, but included a small note with the words, 'and my life.'"
"Looking unto Jesus"
Hebrews 12:2
"Looking unto Jesus"
Hebrews 12:2
