Heavy Heart

I haven’t written much this week…sorry to the thousands of people who tune in to see my daily thoughts! 🙂

Honestly, I have had a heavy heart.  The irony of the holidays for pastors is that it is such a beautiful time for people if all is going well, but on the very same note, it brings out the pain in people as well.  It seems that just as Christmas rolls around, our prayer list gets longer and longer.  When the people in our church are struggling, it is very difficult for me.  I know that God is there for them and that He can be their source, but I feel myself take on the burden as well.  I don’t like to watch people suffer or go through challenging times.  Ecclesiastes talks about mourning with those who mourn and rejoicing with those who rejoice.  I am MUCH better at the rejoicing side of things.  I am a problem solver and sometimes mourning with people evokes a feeling of helplessness.

I find myself trying so desperately to solve the problems or fix the situation, but sometimes you just can’t.  People do what they want to and life is just sometimes difficult.  I remind myself that the fire refines people and it’s OK to walk through the valley because it is there that you find God’s sufficiency.  Still, I am burdened because I love people.

So, I wish for you peace in this Holiday season and hope for those who are feeling helpless.  I also rest assured that the beauty of being in the body of Christ is that we can share one another’s burdens.  I may carry yours for a while, but I know in return, when needed, you will carry mine.  And although my heart is heavy, I am grateful for a God that has a plan to prosper us and not to harm us, to give us a hope and a future…Jer. 29:11.