Jesus Gives Us Rest
By the time Tim and I got back to our camp we already had 14 miles on sore feet. We broke down our tents and gear and carried everything down to the ice patch. I was already bleeding just above both hips. Carrying my Dall sheep and camp off the mountain, my pack was so heavy that I rubbed through the skin a patch about the size of a golf ball on each side. Once we added our meat the packs were so heavy that we each grabbed a shoulder strap and carried them one at a time and set them on a small cutbank. Then we turned our backs toward the packs and were able to 'step into' our shoulder straps.
Counting our rifles, camp, meat, capes and horns, each of these packs easily weighed well over 150 pounds. We were suffering the moment we shouldered the packs, and we had 8 more miles to go. We decided that we would not wait for each other. The weight of the packs was so extreme that it was important that each man travel at his own speed. Some burdens are yours alone to carry. Jesus said, "Come to me you who are weary and carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest." He didn't say, "I will remove your burden."
Where there is a man in the home, the burdens of providing for the family and spiritual leadership belong to him. While our wives are a tremendous help, it is NOT RIGHT for us to ask them to CARRY those burdens. They ASSIST. HER primary burden is to care for the needs of her home and family. He ASSISTS. When married couples get this right, things work incredibly well. We carry an EQUAL weight, but each bears the burden that he or she is most suited to carry. And here's the thing- it's a heavy burden and we FEEL IT almost every single day, but Jesus gives us REST. So? Shoulder the burden that is yours to carry, and you WILL be blessed! -Pastor Brad
Written on February 22, 2026
Posted in Daily Devotions