Day Fifty-eight

“Praise be to the Lord, to God our Savior,
who daily bears our burdens.” (Ps. 68:19)

Scripture Reading: Psalm 68:1–20

Oh, that we could see the daily-ness of God. Often we picture God so focused on His big plan that we forget how involved in our daily process He desires to be.

Do you really believe and understand how much God wants to be part of your daily life? God is looking for a daily, give-and-take relationship with us, but in this unique relationship He TAKES and He GIVES.

What does God desire to “take” from us daily? According to Psalm 68:19, He intends to take our daily burdens. Are you bearing your own burdens? If so, the load is so unnecessary. Perhaps your heart is in the right place—certainly no one can worry like you because no one loves that person like you. No one understands the circumstances like you. It’s complicated. Personal. Secret. Not really God’s “field.” It’s not a religious matter. Anyway, God may not fix this one like we want it. On and on we go until we reason ourselves into burdens too heavy to bear.

Daily—God is willing to take those weights from our weary shoulders. First Peter 5:7 says to cast “all your care upon him; for he careth for you” (kjv). The invitation applies everyday. He daily “bears our burdens” if we will release our grip on them.

If God takes our burdens daily, what does He give? Lamentations 3:22–23 records one of Scripture’s most beautiful promises describing the daily-ness of God: “Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.” New every morning—He sees every need in advance. He is acquainted with every burden even before the bad news. Before the sun rises, He metes out His mercy in direct proportion to your day’s needs.

God desires to TAKE our burdens and GIVE His mercy. How many times have we carried a burden we could have daily traded in for His mercies? Far too many.

Consider what we do to ourselves. We carry a daily bag of burdens. We add today’s to yesterday’s until the load is more than we can balance. Finally, it gets so heavy, our backs nearly break and our joy evaporates. We add to the bag until it starts to tear. Sadly, by the time everything spills, we’re usually torn apart as well. We feel exhausted, hopeless, and angry at God for not helping. All the while, His hands were outstretched as He whispered through His Word, “Cast them to Me! I care for you!”

God never meant for us to keep heaping burdens in the bag. He wants us to pour them at His feet each day and trade in our burdens for fresh mercies.

I have lots of regrets for past burdens I refused to release—times I made life harder than it had to be. I can’t go back and pick up last year’s mercies, and neither can you, but we can receive today’s. Our God is so willing to TAKE AND GIVE. If only we’re willing to GIVE AND TAKE.