“Your heavenly Father knows!”
Matthew 6:32
Yes, believer, your heavenly Father knows . . .
the thoughts that trouble you,
the needs that oppress you,
the sins that grieve you,
the enemies that oppose you,
the domestic trials that distress you,
the financial troubles that bewilder you,
the shattered nerves which alarm you, and
the complicated sorrows that cast you down.
He knows for He is God.
He sympathizes with you because He is your Father.
With paternal sympathy, He will
strengthen,
comfort, and
ultimately deliver you!
(Edward Payson, 1783-1827)
“Remember how the LORD your God led you all the way in the desert these forty years!” Deuteronomy 8:2
“Remember how He . . .
pitied us,
awakened us,
and drew us to Himself by the cords of love!
Remember how often He has since . . .
pardoned our sins,
borne with our unbelief, ingratitude, and stubbornness,
supplied our needs,
listened to our complaints,
alleviated our sorrows, and
revived our drooping spirits when we were ready to faint.
In short, we must remember all the way which He has led us, these many years, through a wilderness of sorrows and trials!
(J.R. Miller, “Intimate Letters on Personal Problems” 1914)
An old Scripture promise reads, “Cast your burden upon the Lord — and He shall sustain you.” Psalm 55:22. Every burden you have, you may cast on the Lord; that is, you may lay it on Him in prayer and by faith. But notice that God does not promise to lift the burden away — all He promises is to sustain you, that is, to give you strength to do the work, to bear the burden, to meet the difficulty, to master the hindrance or the obstacle.