Galatians 6:2 says “Bear ye one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.” Over the past 6 months, our family has been blessed by a church full of burden bearers! And, they’re not just “ordinary burden bearers”, they’ve been “creative burden bearers”, often blessing us in ways that I would never have thought of, or would have been far too embarrassed to ask for.
I thought I’d share a few general suggestions based on what we have received, so that the next time you are thinking about how to practically bear another’s burden this list will be a handy resource for you.
PRAY: So often we turn to prayer after we have tried everything else, when prayer is absolutely the most needed and best thing we can do for someone else! James 5:16 says “Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.” If you’re not sure what to pray for, pray for healing, for strength to endure, for patience in the trial, and wisdom for all involved in the situation. Pray that Christ would be glorified in the trial, for financial provisions, and for an opportunity to share the Gospel through it all. (You might think of more topics to add to the list).
COMMUNICATE: Let someone know that you are praying for him or her. Send a card or a text message that specifies what you are praying for, and how you are praying. If you are able to have a conversation, ask “How can I pray for you?”
GIVE: Amy Carmichael said “You can give without loving, but you cannot love without giving.” We sure do have a bunch of loving and giving people at BBC! Here are a few practical ways that they have lovingly given to us over the past few months:
Time (babysitting, offers to transport older children to activities/work, inviting kids over to play, invite to coffee, invite for dinner, or just provide a
listening ear).
Gift Cards/Cash (restaurants, gas, grocery store)
Meals* (hot meals, freezer meals, snacks, breads, desserts)
*Note that if you are delivering a meal to someone who is going through a health trial, it is a special blessing if you send a text to say, for example, “I’m bringing chicken noodle soup for dinner. It will be on your porch at 5:30 p.m. I will text you when I’ve left so that you can stay in your pj’s. Feel better soon!” This will help the sick person know that they don’t have to get up, get ready and tidy up for your arrival.
REMEMBER: Someone going through a trial often (necessarily!) receives a lot of attention, but there are others (spouse, children, family members) sharing the trial with them. The biggest blessing to me has been when friends have remembered Kyle or our boys. From anonymous gift cards on Kyle’s desk for our boys to go places where they would enjoy eating burgers, pizza, tacos (and other health foods!), to men reaching out to Kyle to encourage him, to deliveries of ice cream or other treats to our house—all these acts of kindness were noticed and appreciated.
This is by no means an exhaustive list, but it may provide some practical ideas about how to help fulfill Galatians 6:2. A Swedish proverb says, “A shared joy is a double joy; a shared sorrow is half a sorrow.”
Thank you to the MANY who have helped to bear our burden, divide our sorrow, and NOW share in our joy!