“Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.”
– Psalm 51:12 (NIV)
Daily Meditation: Matthew 11, Psalm 51
What burden are you carrying today? It’s time to lay it down. When you hold onto burdens, your shoulders ache from the weight, and your steps are slowed because you are continually weighed down. Your past may be a heavy burden, but you can be freed from that weight! While acknowledging the pain we’ve endured, when we stand face to face with God’s perspective of our past, we really can’t respond with anything less than gratefulness and deep appreciation for his grace and mercy in our lives.
God has taken our burdens from us! Do you remember the day when he lifted the burden of sin from your life? The life-changing moment you accepted Christ? When we truly comprehend what Jesus did for us, we either stand amazed or fall flat on our faces, bowing in awe and thankfulness to our holy Father! Either way, we are fully confident that his demonstration of love will forever play a crucial role in our lives.
But then time goes by. Memories fade, and slowly but surely, we start picking up our burdens again, forgetting that we no longer have to carry them. But although we may have forgotten the power of that incredible moment, his grace is no less passionate, his mercy is just as powerful, and his love is still as far-reaching now as it was then. The only difference is in our own minds. Our memory may have faded, but the intense glory of his redemption shines as brightly as ever! Maybe that is why the psalmist prayed, “Restore to me the joy of your salvation.”
This fading of reality affects all of us, especially second and third generation Christians. Life gets in the way and we start taking on worldly burdens again. So how do we stop? The way to fight this tendency is to:
- Remember and rehearse the many great things God has done for you.
- Boldly declare (out loud) that your forgetting in no way weakens or minimizes his
- Continually surrender your burdens to him and experience his strength in your spirit.
“I’d advise you, then, to quickly get rid of your burden;
for until then you’ll never be settled in your mind
or enjoy the benefits of the blessings that God has given you.”
– John Bunyan, Pilgrim’s Progress
Take action by remembering. Lay your burdens down at Jesus’ feet, and remember that you don’t need to take them up again! This truth gives you strength and immediately fills your mouth with praise!
Let’s let 2019 be the year we grow closer to the Lord and become the fearless, strong, and faithful woman we are meant to be in Him! In Be Fearless, Julie Clinton provides a scripturally-sound guide for finding freedom, purpose, joy… and fearlessness. Be Fearless is now available in our store! https://www.aacc.net/product/be-fearless/ Consider working through Be Fearless with another extraordinary woman or group this year!
Julie Clinton, MAd, MBA, is president of Extraordinary Women and host of EWomen conferences all across America. She is the author of several books including A Woman’s Path to Emotional Freedom, 10 Things You Aren’t Telling Him, and Extraordinary Women. She is passionate about seeing women live out their dreams by finding their freedom in Christ. Julie and her husband, Tim, live in Virginia with their children, Megan and Zach.