Burden Bearers
(Numbers 3:14 – 4:49)
Levites in the Wilderness
Author Unknown
Can a burden be a blessing?
We talk about burdens, as if they were a bad thing. Perhaps a loved one might share a weighty concern, unloading a season of suffering for shared prayer and personal encouragement. Possibly, someone might ask for assistance with some heavy lifting – physically, psychologically or even spiritually.
In God’s economy, burden bearing can be a great honor.
Consider the Levites.
Today’s reading details at length the Lord’s instructions for the sons of Levi (Gershon, Kohath and Merari) and how they are to care for and carry the various components of the Tabernacle of God.
The Hebrew people were wandering through the wilderness, led by the Lord, so the Tabernacle was still a portable structure. When the Lord lifted the cloud of His Presence, the people knew it was time to pack up and move on to the next location He would show to them.
God clearly delineated which members of the Levite priestly line would care for the fabrics, the frames and the other fine items of the Tabernacle. Each Levite family had no doubt about their responsibilities.
As the Hebrew people traveled by foot into unfamiliar territory, following the Lord’s leading, the priests would tote the Tabernacle. The other tribes would serve as sentries and soldiers.
Who wants to be a burden-bearer?
God surely calls each of us to specific tasks in His master plan. Perhaps He has given you a ministry, even for a season, as a burden-bearer. Has He called you to care for His sacred things in some way? Has He called you to intercession? Has He called you to help maintain His house?
How often do we plead with the Lord to place us on the front lines of battle, where we think we might find signs, wonders and spiritual excitement? Might we not find God’s greatest blessings by serving Him in secret and sacred ways?
Could a pole-carrier, a frame-folder or a candlestick-polisher find greater honor in the Kingdom of God? Where does the real heavy lifting occur in the Lord’s ministry?
The Levites picked up poles and parcels. What are we willing to pick up and carry for the Lord? How about the cross of Christ?
“For My yoke is easy
and My burden is light.”
Let’s carry on for the Lord.
Will you pray with me?
Loving Lord,
Why do we groan and murmur,
As if we carried heavy loads,
When You have borne
The most weighty one of all?
You carried the weight of the world,
Our sin
For us.
Grow our desire
To honor You
By becoming burden-bearers.
Strengthen our faith,
And our will to serve You
Wherever You will.
Amen.
This is so true, Linda. I have experienced the blessing of burden bearing many times. Although, hindsight is twenty-twenty :) It wasn't so easy to see the blessing while carrying the burden! But that is where faith comes in.
ReplyDelete:)Laura
Bear one another burdens and so fulfill the law of Christ. We are each called to be burden bearers in different ways. Good Word Linda I have really enjoy these devotions.
ReplyDeleteFor every burden I bear for someone the lord has chosen I am blessed. The moment I release the burden to the cross the holyspirit leads me in spirit, it may take hours with Jesus for the burden to be taken from me in that moment I am given such PEACE!! The lord blesses his servent FOR GOD IS GOOD AMEN!
ReplyDeleteWhile meditating on a special need of my pastor. God revealed to me that I am a Burden Carrier. I did not fully understand because, I know the word says that "God bears our burdens". So I decided to find scripture to read about burden carriers. I was lead to 2 Chronicles 2:18. I continued to research this topic and ended up here. I know now that I am an intercessor and what a great gift from God.
ReplyDeleteGlory be unto God.
Hi Linda my name is Colleen I am 49 years old and I live in Queensland Australia. I am a security guard and have had a big life as I call it. I have been told in the past I am a sensitive or psycic I dont know I think I have good intuition am am just a good person. I was sent to the salvation army for religious study as a child with my brothers and I grew up in a home filled with alcohol and trouble. As a small child I almost drowned and was saved. I didnt know god when I was drowning I was too young but I remember every minute as I struggled to save myself being sucked down the tube of the whirly pool in the Goulbourn River. I do remember asking God to save me, I was swallowing water and starting to pass out. I felt a tug on my hair and then nothing, then another tug on my hair I was pulled up, I was saved by a greek man, who was this God bloke I asked to help I thought it must have been the Greek man who deliverd me to the bank and my mum. I remember the saddest thing for me was crying myself to sleep at night because I thought my mum didn't love me, she told me she had tried to get rid of me when I was a baby via self abortion due to the depression and the end of the war I guess the late 50's and 60's were hard for all of us in the world, my mum was an alcoholic and it was hard work looking after her when I was little. I have always forgiven. I have dreams and I wake up very tired once I dreamt of a huge commercial plane crashing into my home I lead my family away from the plane as it crashes the dream and more just thoughts of it went for about 2 years prior to 911 I was living in Darwin at the time. I had a dream of loosing my son in raging waters on a beach he was swept into a cave with a little girl who looked like me. I couldn't save them When I woke up terrified it was mid morning, later that night the Bali tsnami was revealed to the world. around the same time a few weeks later I had another terrifying dream that a fireball fell from the sky onto my son I tried to extinguish the flames and could not again ith was revealed in the news that 15 children had perished in a fire in a minibus in victoria.In my dreams I am always leading people or moving along on route to somewhere. Last night as I was working on the door of a nightclub a young woman just came up to me a asked if I was any good a councilling?. She just turned up at my side never senn her before. Ended up she does bible readings and both parents are pastors she was a beautiful person she told me her sorrow and said she wanted to kill herself because she could not please her parents. I felt overwhealming emotion and I eventually helped her she was happy for the rest of the night and gave thanks to me for what I had done for her. She told me I was a Burden Carrier in the biblical sense and this morning I found your website now I want to know more about this am I what you call a Bearer? My best friend says that explains everything and I have helped her also. Was I a bearer in a past life? Should I pay more attention to God or has he chosen me anyway. Has he really given me something special? Why am I not an overly religious person but feel I have to recite the lords prayer when I feel down; which happens sometimes. I am other wise a happy and strong willed woman.
ReplyDeleteThanks for showing me.
Colleen
Hervey Bay
Australia
All of us are carrying heavy loads - we are doing our part in our journey, being responsible for our lives. But sometimes those loads become burdens and we begin to struggle and find we can't bear the weight ourselves. Please call on a Stephen Minister.
ReplyDelete