Just When I Need Him Most


“Come all you are weary…..and I will give you rest. Matthew 11:28

Jesus beacons those who are tired and weary to come unto Him and find rest. I don’t know where you are and how that speaks to you but it speaks volumes to me.

Life has a way of making us tired. Tired physically, emotionally and spiritually. There are days when we are energized and moving mountains seems well within our reach and then there are the days where we are unable to focus on even the simplest of tasks. The days we are weary are the days when Jesus meets us right where we are and says “here I am, let me take this burden from you.” For some Christians letting go of those burdens is as easy as breathing, for others it is almost impossible to let them go.

Recently I found myself in the midst of some dark and gloomy days, both emotionally and spiritually. I had a really hard time finding words to pray and my emotions were running on empty. I was at a crossroad looking at both directions seeing possibilities down each path and trying to decide which road was the best. I had family and friends trying to help me with my decision, advising, sharing their thoughts and opinions about what I needed to do until one day I realized that I couldn’t stand there looking down that road any longer. Jesus came along side and reminded me that my focus needed to be on Him not on me. I couldn’t move down the road until I had made a decision which road to take and the only voice I needed to hear was His. It was at that moment that God intervene and the answer came. It was a quiet whisper and a peace came over me, not so that I noticed it immediately, but my heart was no longer in turmoil over my decision. I was able to look down the road with confidence that my decision was the right one.

Jesus walks the road of decision with us. Never pushing but gently leading us down the road that we need to travel. He sees our heavy hearts and he grieves when we grieve and He hurts when we hurt. Like a good parent He wants to take the burdens we bear and take them away. So many times I have heard my earthly father say to me, “I wish I could take this burden away from you”. Why would he say that, because he loves me that much. How many times have I prayed over my own children, knowing that their burdens were great and that I could not make them lighter or less painful, they needed Jesus to help them through those difficult times. More than the love my earthly father gives is the love of my heavenly father. God in his infinite wisdom sends us what we need, just when we need it most.

I have a dear pastor friend who recently lost his wife to cancer. They had been married for over 50 years. So great was his loss that you could feel his pain in the words he spoke and the words he wrote. Those of us who love him watched as he struggled to make sense of his loss, why this, why now. But one thing we also witnessed and are witnessing is the healing power of Jesus Christ. Jesus called him to lay down the burden of his wife’s death, and though it was a difficult thing for him to do, he has placed the burden of his pain upon the strong and able shoulders of his Lord. Just like my friend, in my weakness, I need Jesus to walk along side me and lift
my burdens. Some times He will carry them all by himself. That is just like Him. Other times He will simply walk along side of us and share the burden with us. That too is just like Him. He knows exactly what we need from Him. We don’t respond to every life situation the same and our needs are different for every situation that we are facing. God knows that. We just need to be willing to accept His offer of help.