Burdens Down, Lord, Burdens Down

Often beneath the level of consciousness, we take on things that become burdens, that weigh us down like a sackful of picked cotton.  In truth, nobody forces us to undertake much of what we end up doing. Granted, sometimes circumstances propel us into making decisions that tend to hang on long after the "crisis" has passed.  Sometimes if we just wait a minute, things work themselves out, become manageable or  malleable, until equilibrium returns.  The sun's going to rise in the East and set in the West, no matter what time zone you're in.  I'm not saying, though, that only frivolous situations or circumstances get blown out of proportion and into burden-land  Serious things, worthy of burdens, do happen.

We may or may not be equipped or ready to take unforeseen situations on; typically we try, primarily because we're a nation of Helpers.  It's that "Can Do" spirit embedded in us through culture and history. However, Kenny Rogers sang, "You got to know when to hold them.  Know when to fold them.  Know when we walk away. Know when to run. You never count your money while you're sitting at the table.  There'll be time enough to count it when the deal is done." Knowledge is power and that kind of awareness is powerful.  Or much more difficult yet much more rewarding, sometimes, is that we may choose the road of surrendering "life stuff" to God.  Long ago as slaves toiling in cotton fields under a blistering, unrelenting sun , our ancestors learned the wisdom of singing:

"Glory, glory, hallelujah since I laid my burdens down.

Glory, glory hallelujah since I laid my burdens down.

Burdens down, Lord.  Burdens down,

Since I laid my burdens down.

Burdens down, Lord, burdens down,

Since I laid my burdens down.

I feel better, so much better, since I laid my burdens down.

I feel better, so much better, since I laid my burdens down."

I'm convinced we carry things God never intended us to carry, principally because we don't fully understand the Father-child relationship.  Self-reliance has made such a  muddle of so many things!  Once we understand that He is the Potter, and we are the clay, things take on a balance we'd never have imagined.  That's when the peace that passes human understanding comes.  That peace always has been there, hidden usually within the flotsam and jetsam of or lives.  Yet even in the most horrific of times and especially in death or other losses, peace is there.  I used to think  I had to be old, like grandmother-old,  to even contemplate peace.  Maybe Mother didn't realize the lesson and comfort inherent in singing to young ears.  Perhaps, she did.  She introduced the concept of peace to me, unearned and quavery sometimes, when she would sing:

"When peace like a river, attendeth my way, when sorrows like sea billows roll; whatever my 

lot, Thou hast taught me to say, It is well, it is well with my soul.  In confirmation, she would sing, "It is well with my soul, It is well, it is well with my soul."  

I'm not talking about peace that can be purchased in a medicine vial or imbibed from bottles of wine or booze. Believe me, I've tried them and I liked them---maybe too much  You can "dance" only so long to the "music" before the piper must be paid. It's hard dancing with a hangover!  Scripture promises, "And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Jesus Christ" (Philippians 4:7).  Don't trust me, trust Him!