Lord, Teach Us To Pray - Part Seven

 

1 Peter 5:7

Casting all your care upon Him;

for He cares for you.

    Many Scriptures inform us that we cannot carry the burdens, the loads we gather upon ourselves, by ourselves. We need Someone to help us, especially to carry the burden of sin with which we have entangled ourselves. Jesus carried that burden on the cross, for the weight of the sins of the whole world, including you and I, were laid on His shoulders and He became sin, that you and I might have eternal life in Him. 

    Psalm 55:22 

Cast your burden upon The LORD and He will sustain you; He will never let the righteous be shaken.

    Philippians 4:6, 7

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

    Matthew 6:25-27, 30

Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air: They do not sow or reap or gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.

    Matthew 11:28

Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.

    Psalm 37:5

Commit your way to the LORD; trust in Him, and He will bring it to pass.

    When we cast our cares on our Lord and Savior, we are trusting in His timing, His covenant with us. to take care of our burdens, our loads, our struggles, our failures, our needs and our wants. When we bring these things to God in prayer, we need to leave them there, too. Stop taking the impossible situations back into our own hands and leave them in God's hands. 

    We sing quite a few songs about casting our cares on God, too.  "Casting Your Care Upon Him" by Fanny Crosby. "It Is Well With My Soul" - Horatio Spafford. "What A Friend We Have In Jesus" - Joseph Scriven. "Oceans" - Hillsong. "Be Still My Soul" - Kari Jobe. "Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus" - Helen H. Lemmel. "Blessed Assurance" - Fanny Crosby. 

    The soul is detail-oriented. I like things to be in order, but I'm not totally organized yet. I like what I wear to do more than clothe me: it must be sufficient for the works that I must do. Not necessarily matchy-matchy, but put together well. I'm funny that way. 

    The soul gets weary, too. It knows emotional pain and bears the weight of grief until the times of mourning pass. The weary soul has learned to lean on The Word of God. "Leaning On Jesus (Leaning On The Everlasting Arms)" is a classic hymn by A. J. Showalter and Elisha A. Hoffman that meanders across my thoughts when I need strength. The arms of God never fail me, for His Strength holds me up every day. 

    Come, let us cast our cares on our Lord today.