He Cares!

If you’re anything like me, you may find it hard to pack for a trip. I always seem to over pack. I think of every outfit I might need for every possible occasion. There have been times when I’m flying that I hold my breath as the gate agent weighs my bag to make sure it’s under the 50 pound limit. Before airlines began charging for bags, it was nothing for me to check a large bag, have a carryon and a purse for a week-long trip. Once airlines starting charging for checked luggage, I quickly learned how to limit the number of items I placed and the bag and only pack what I need for the journey. I realized that I was packing a lot if things I really didn’t need. Many of the things I’d packed served no use during the trip. They were packed “just in case,” but often they never even made it out of the suitcase.

Many of us go through life carrying burdens that we were never meant to carry. We are burdened with worry and fear, overly concerned about things that we have no control over and that might never happen. In 1Peter 5:7, we are reminded that as Christians we are not designed to carry around baggage. It serves no use on this trip. In fact, we are instructed to, “Cast our cares upon Him, because He cares for us.”

Do you feel heavy or weighted down? Perhaps it is because you are carrying burdens you were never meant to carry. This passage invites us to cast (throw) all of our cares (anxieties, objects of our attention) onto the Lord. Why, because He cares! Isn’t it good to know that what concerns us, concerns God. No matter how great or small, whether spiritual or temporal, God concerns Himself with the things that concern us.

“Why would He be so concerned about me?” you may ask. It’s because He’s your Father. If you’re a parent, you have a hard time not being concerned about the things that concern your children. When they hurt, you hurt. You do everything in your power to protect them. If we as humans feel this way about our children, how do you think God feels about you? He doesn’t want you to spend your time worrying. He wants nothing more than for your life to be filled with joy, so He says, “Let me take care of your cares!”

As a matter of fact in Psalms 55:22, it says, “Cast they burden upon the Lord, and He will sustain thee.” That means not only will He take care of your burden, He will take care of you! God will carry both you and your burden. Isn’t that good news? That thing that seems too hard for you to carry, God wants to carry both it and you!

Many Sundays after church, we eat dinner at my parents’ house. Last Sunday, we’d had a long day at church, and when it was time to leave, my son was exceptionally tired. He asked my husband, “Daddy, will you carry me?” Without a second thought, my husband scooped him up, placed him on his shoulder and carried him to the car. My mom smiled and recounted how when we were younger, my dad had done the same for my sister and I. She said, “Your daddy would be carrying y’all, and your feet were stretching past his knees. You were too big for him to still be carrying, but he still kept picking y’all up.” My dad replied with a smile, “I sure did!”

Aren’t you glad that you never get too big for God to carry? If my earthly father, with his frailties and shortcomings, was more than willing to carry me when I got weary, how much more willing is my heavenly father, who is perfect in all His ways?

Cast your cares upon him. He cares for you. A day is coming when you’ll be able to look back on what you’re going through now and you’ll see how God carried you. You’ll recount the story, and He’ll smile and say, “I sure did!”