Day 13: Matthew 11
HE AIN'T HEAVY, HE'S MY BROTHER (11:28-30)
I have been back to Grimsby to preach a few times now. Based on a story I once told, I was advertised once as 'The Hide the Poo Man', which would've been a strange thing to see if you hadn't been previously and actually heard the story. I won't go into it now, but I'd like to clarify that I have never been involved in any such activity. The closest I've ever come is nipping into what I believed to be a disused alley for a desperate toilet stop, only to discover partway through that it was actually a pretty major cut-through for people. Painful.
Anyway, I was preaching at this youth event back in Grimsby and I received the first heckle I've ever received, from a youth leader. I mentioned that people may have heard people saying 'if you've come here with a problem, leave it at the door and come in and worship God'. I went on to state that I believe that's garbage. The heckler yelled that I was wrong. I was taken back a bit, but tried to go on to explain myself.
I know why people make that statement. However, I don't believe it's helpful. I believe that statements telling us to leave our problems at the door run the risk of using a church service as some kind of escapism from life, only to leave and carry on with our baggage. I believe that as we go through difficult times, it's important to bring our pain and struggles to God and be honest about them.
When Jesus tells those who are burdened to come to him, he is not telling them to ignore their burdens for an hour. Rather he is telling people that he will give them rest. He is showing us that God wants to be involved in our lives, to bring us true release and rest. That's not to say that we won't have problems in this world if we put our hope in Jesus. As we follow him, there will be some truly painful things to go through. However, it is my belief that Jesus isn't interested in us putting on a good show for church, so that we just plough through showing people that everything is OK while inside we're in turmoil.
I know this all too well. For years I spent money that I didn't have, leaving me with £15,000 of debt. After taking out credit cards to pay off other bills, I ran out of options. On the outside, I was a man with a good job, who'd done well. I wasn't afraid to spend money to keep that up, as I liked feeling that I was a bit of a success. Ultimately, I knew I was in trouble. Every month, I'd try to ignore the problem, hoping somehow it would get better. I had no plan, and was only paying the minimum amount each month, and was sinking deeper and deeper into real trouble.
I will always remember where it finally came to a head. I was visiting my parents back home, and I tried to get cash out the day after payday. The bank declined. I was over my overdraft limit before I'd paid rent, bills or anything for the month ahead. I stood at the cash machine as tears filled my eyes. I had no hope. I knew it was my fault. My mum came and asked if I was alright, and I broke down. I started to cry and told her everything. My parents have no money. My mum works as a children's evangelist, relying on donations from people to support her ministry. I will never know how they paid it, but they took some debt on themselves for me. They asked me to seek help, and I spoke to someone from church. We sorted out a plan, and I began the long journey of working my way out of trouble.
No matter how strong we try to be, we so often develop stronger relationships when we're able to be weak in front of each other. Only when we share our burdens, can we reach a situation where we people are able to help us carry them.
Today, if you’re struggling, share it with someone. Let the mask of ‘doing alright’ slip and seek help. Find someone who will pray with you. From my experience, people in churches want to support others and bring hope where they can. Let’s share with each other, support each other and help each other place those burdens into the hands of God, which are strong, wise and will never let anything fall.
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