carrying the load

CARING AND CARRYING

(November 29, 2022) Dr Robert McQuillan warns an ‘over-caring’ Christian…

Dear Dr Robert

I care for people and I follow that command of Jesus to care for, to love anyone who is mt neighbour. Some of those I’ve been interceding for, praying for, has me thinking a lot about them, even during the day and sometimes awakening to do so during the night. They have what I call heavy problems and… well, I can only describe what’s happened this way. I’ve been feeling heavy myself, deeply sensitive to their hurts and it’s as if I feeling their burdens on my heart. This making me feel down – yet some of them seem to be getting free of their problems. Am I making myself clear here. Maybe this all sounds too mixed up. Sorry. ‘Weary Will’ (not real name).

Dear ‘Weary Will’

Hold it right there! Yes, I understand you, how you’re feeling, that heaviness that you’ve encountered. To help you, I’ll go straight to the point! The problem is that you’re not just caring, you’re wrongly carrying!

Yes,  you’re doing right in caring – as all Christians should for anyone that we consider ‘Luke 10:25ff neighbours’ and in every way we can. But one thing we can’t do is this: we can’t carry them! This is a mistake that Satan has lured well-thinking Christians into and it has eat away at them, stealing their own happiness, even causing sickness.

I urge you to recall that you’re a servant of Jesus, not our Lord Himself! Only Jesus can care to the extreme of carrying sicknesses, heartbreak, hurts and  burdens that we humans experience.

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IN DEFENSE OF ‘WHINGERS’

(October 19, 2020) Erica Grace, ex-missionary to South America, challenges us to really care for others.

As we were waiting for the bell to ring, the children were running all over the school playground. Suddenly ‘Adam’ (not real name) tripped and fell down the concrete steps, right by my feet.

 I reached down to help him but his mother stopped me, saying, ‘He’ll be right. I don’t want him to be a whinger.’  Then she turned to Adam and said, ‘Get up, Adam. Men don’t cry!’

My eyes followed little Adam as he got up and limped behind a bush to rub his little knees and wipe away his tears.  Yes, little Adam will never become a whinger.

People need to share!
A few days later I sat waiting for a bus at the Ringwood station. We were having a heat wave and even the shade was hot. Suddenly an elderly lady came from nowhere and sat right next to me, so close to me that she was in fact sitting on the edge of my dress!

In my heart I felt annoyed, she had so much bench space; why sit so close on such a hot day.

I admit that I was thinking of pulling my dress from under her… but that first reaction was to change quickly when she suddenly turned her deeply lined face to me and said in a loud, anguished voice: ‘I just came from my nephew’s funeral. He was only 26. If only he had been able to talk to someone, he wouldn’t have committed suicide.’

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