Tuesday October 24, 2023

Today is Tuesday, October 24 and we are learning what the Bible says about bearing with others.

As I begin this time of prayer, I pause and become still. I quiet my mind, slow my breath and open my heart to the presence of the God who loves me.

Pause and Pray

Blessed Lord, thank you for the community of faithful followers I have found in my church home. I am grateful for valuable relationships that strengthen my steps and nourish my faith. Show me what it means to live life together and bear with one another in love. Amen.

I praise God and rejoice in his goodness with the words of Psalm 68.

Praise be to the Lord, to God our Savior, who daily bears our burdens. Our God is a God who saves; from the Sovereign LORD comes escape from death. Psalm 68:19-20

Pause and Pray

There are many healing stories of Jesus in the Gospels. A favorite one is the account of the paralyzed man. Living with paralysis in ancient times is unimaginable. We don’t know how the man became paralyzed, but we do know he lived his life lying on a mat. We don’t know if the man suffered from this condition for days or decades, but we do know he was helpless. We don’t know if the man had a family, but we do know he had friends. Good friends. Friends that cared. Friends that would do anything in their power to bring him to Jesus.

Some men came carrying a paralyzed man on a mat and tried to take him into the house to lay him before Jesus. When they could not find a way to do this because of the crowd, they went up on the roof and lowered him on his mat through the tiles into the middle of the crowd, right in front of Jesus. When Jesus saw their faith, he said, “Friend, your sins are forgiven. I want you to know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.” So he said to the paralyzed man, “I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home.” Immediately he stood up in front of them, took what he had been lying on and went home praising God. Everyone was amazed and gave praise to God. They were filled with awe and said, “We have seen remarkable things today.” Luke 5:18-20, 24-26

These four good men obviously cared about their paralyzed friend a great deal. Everyday they likely grieved his condition and recalled the tragic accident that caused it. Someone must have brought him food, cleansed his body, comforted his loneliness. Was it them? For whatever reason, they bore the burden of his condition everyday. They carried his suffering in their hearts and they were the ones who carried him to Jesus. The person they hoped could help this man, their friend. I consider the people in my faith community, and the burdens they are bearing. I name those who struggle with illness, disease, chronic pain, grief, fear, hunger, loneliness, financial concerns, addictions or relationship problems.

Ask: How am I carrying the burdens of those in my church community? How do others help bear my burdens?

Pause and Pray

Blessed Lord Jesus, you are the ultimate Healer and Great Physician. Give me eyes to see those in my faith community who are suffering and show me how I can bear their burdens. Give me ears to hear the cries of others and teach me to patiently listen. Give me a heart of compassion and hands to hold them up in their struggles. Help me know how to bring them to you for hope and healing. I read the words from Luke again and listen for the message you have for me.

Some men came carrying a paralyzed man on a mat and tried to take him into the house to lay him before Jesus. When they could not find a way to do this because of the crowd, they went up on the roof and lowered him on his mat through the tiles into the middle of the crowd, right in front of Jesus. When Jesus saw their faith, he said, “Friend, your sins are forgiven. I want you to know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.” So he said to the paralyzed man, “I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home.” Immediately he stood up in front of them, took what he had been lying on and went home praising God. Everyone was amazed and gave praise to God. They were filled with awe and said, “We have seen remarkable things today.” Luke 5:18-20, 24-26

Ask: What image, word or phrase stands out to me when I slowly read this passage? What is God trying to say to me through these words of scripture?

Pause and Pray

As I reflect on Luke’s account of the healing of a paralytic, I consider where I might be in the story. Am I the one paralyzed, lying on the mat brought to the feet of the Healer? Am I one of the friends, tasked with carrying the weight of another, figuring out how to get him help, climbing to the roof, lifting his lifeless body, breaking down barriers to bring him to Jesus? Maybe I am one of the faceless crowd, witnessing an amazing miracle and praising God. Perhaps God is calling me to a place of bearing the burdens of someone in my church. Maybe God is inviting me to accept the help of others to carry my burden.

Pause and Pray

Holy Lord, thank you that I am not alone in this world. You are with me and you have given me a support system of faithful believers. Show me how to live life together with other Christians the way you want us to live – bearing one another’s burdens in love. You have put us in each other’s lives for mutual blessing. Thank you. Amen.

Even to your old age and gray hairs I am he, I am he who will sustain you. I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you. Isaiah 46:4

I leave this time of prayer knowing I do not carry my burdens alone. I go to share in bearing the burdens of others.

Amen