September 19, 2024
Have you ever had that heavy feeling internally - like your heart is hurting? I can think of several times in my life when I have felt that way. The one that stands out the most is the days after we had to place our daughter with autism into residential care. It was heavy and my heart was hurting.
To me, the heaviness is not necessarily caused by physical exertion, but the heaviness seems to be contributed by mental and emotional items. These are the things that weigh heavily on your heart. At times, it might be one "big" item that is draining your emotions. There are also those times when there seem to be a handful of smaller issues, but they add up and cause you to bear a heavy load.
I feel as though maybe that's the scenario I am dealing with. There is nothing "big" happening, but just all the little things that drain my mental and emotional capacity. Our special needs daughter requires back surgery (again) and the insurance has denied it. Our air conditioner went out. In the process, a drainpipe leaked in the attic and caused damage to the sheet rock and other things. We are still waiting on Wayne's disability claim (18 months and counting). School started last week and one of our grandchildren is struggling, which breaks my heart.
These are just a few of the issues on my mind and heart. Again, I know people who are dealing with way bigger heart hurts than mine, so I am definitely aware these are small issues in the scheme of things. However, I am saying they weigh heavily on my heart.
I was on my way to work one day earlier this week and noticed a strange site. We have had a good bit of rain in July and recently we had storms with strong winds. Along the interstate, there are huge cement-looking walls that are sound barrier walls. On one particular stretch of the road, I noticed at least four enormous pine trees had fallen over onto different sections of the wall. The trees were so large they were hanging over the wall, but they did not crush the wall. They had to have been heavy when they fell but the wall held them up. Actually, the wall kept them from falling into the interstate where they might have caused a bad accident. The walls were strong enough to hold up under the heavy load of the trees.
As I was thinking about this picture, God reminded me that He is just like that wall. I can be burdened with emotional, mental, or even physical hurts that seem and feel so heavy. I might feel like I could fall but I have a God who will not let me. He will hold me up even when my heart feels heavy. The Bible says in 2 Corinthians 4:8 (NLT) "We are pressed on every side by troubles, but we are not crushed. We are perplexed, but not driven to despair."
God will not allow my heart or my spirit to be crushed. HE will hold me up. HE will protect my heart, give me hope, and be my strength during the hard times of life. If you read on, 2 Corinthians 4 verse 17 says "For our present troubles are small and won't last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever." Don't lose heart, friends.
If our troubles in this life were weighed on a scale, the glory of eternal life spent with God will always far outweigh the troubles. God is telling me and you to not give up even when life seems heavy and hard. I have to be able to replace the heaviness that might weigh me down with the unending love of my Savior who holds me up.
What about you? Are you carrying internal heaviness? Sometimes those are the hardest loads to carry because they are unseen to others around you. Just remember God sees and knows all. He is the ultimate wall that will hold you up and protect you when your life and heart are heavy. Trust me when I say you can lean on Him. You can fall on Him. He will never let you down!
___
Jill Johnson, a staff member at the Georgia Baptist Mission Board, finds spiritual applications in her everyday experiences as a wife, mother, grandmother and Georgian. She is available to speak to your church's women's gatherings. Reach her at jjohnson@gabaptist.org.
