Sis. Sue McGuire - Be A Burden Bearer

well tonight i've been given the subject speak on be a burden bearer be a bird and bear our text is found in galatians six and two bear ye one another's burdens and so fulfill the law of christ

the word burden comes from the greek word berose which means await so that could be any kind of weight it could be a sickness loss of job just anything that would kind of weigh us down or press us down and if we could choose i think we prefer to live this life without any burdens at all at least i think we would like to enjoy life at least if our burdens were even light but the truth of the matter is we are going to face burdens in this life and there's going to be different seasons all kinds of seasons and some of those seasons will include burdens ephesians 3 1-8 to everything there is a season and a time to every purpose under the heaven a time to be born and a time to die a time to plant and a time to pluck up that which is planted a time to kill and a time to heal a time to break down and a time to build up a time to weep and a time to laugh a time to mourn in a time to dance a time to cast away stones and a time to gather stones together a time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing a time to get and a time to lose a time to keep and a time to cast away a time to rend and a time to sow a time to keep silence and a time to speak a time to love and a time to hate a time of war and a time of peace

and as we read through these different seasons and ecclesiastics some of those feel like rejoicing don't they they feel like rejoicing i was thinking a time to be born we get excited about the birth of a new baby we're getting excited about a new baby that's going to be born into our family and then a time to laugh we enjoy laughing we enjoy dancing we enjoy when it's a time to get and a time to love and a time of peace but along with those seasons there's also seasons of heaviness and weight and they may appear very heavy the good news is we do not have to bear our burdens alone when when we're in those seasons we are not alone oh it might feel like it we might feel alone we might feel isolated but god is with us we are not alone

matthew 28 and 20. teaching them to observe all things whatsoever i have commanded you and lo i am with you alway even until the end of the world amen i like that amen at the end it's like it's saying so be it let it be so thank god he is with us always and not only is he with us but we also have one another don't we aren't you thankful for the body of christ i'm so thankful for the body of christ and we might as well be honest we do need one another sometimes we come in here and we we walk in here and a lot of times we might have a mask on acting like everything's just fine and everything's okay sometimes we have a smile on our face and if we're asked the question how are you doing i'm fine i'm good everything's great but if the truth be known there are times when we walk in those doors and we want to appear strong but inside we're crying inside we're hurting and we're crying silently for someone or somebody to help us and there's just something about humans we want to appear to be strong but god knows us and he understands our weaknesses and it's okay to admit whenever we are weak why because it's going to allow us to open up and it's also going to give the others the opportunity to come alongside of us and help us bear our carry our burdens psalm 103 14 for he knoweth our frame he remembereth that we are dust then i'd like to read psalm 103 verses 13 and 14 in the new living translation the lord is like a father to his children tender and compassionate to those who fear him for he knows how weak we are he remembers we are only dust god hears those silent cries doesn't he have you been in those times where you your heart is just crying out maybe you're wanting to be strong outwardly but inside you're crying out and god hears those cries and what does he do he sends us burden bearers aren't you thankful for burden bearers those that come alongside of us and they say hey i'm i'm here for you whatever you need

i'm here for you i'm gonna help you bear your burdens and as i was studying and praying about this message my mind just went to so many of you in this congregation throughout the years when you've had your burdens to bear and where the church has just come alongside you and helped you bear those burdens now you may be in a season of rejoicing at this time right now and then some other some others might be in a season of bear and burdens but together we're together and we're going to be burdened bears at the appropriate time aren't we what does it mean to be a burden bearer the word bear comes from the greek word bastazo

which means to carry to take up or even to take away or carry off it means to take away or to help carry the weight someone else is experiencing we are actually bringing some form of relief to someone else's challenging situation and really sometimes it might only be for an hour sometimes it might be for a day that we're able to help them and offer relief and sometimes it might be huge to that individual but the main thing is to come alongside them and offer whatever we can offer them to help them release some of that heavy load that they're carrying now i wanted to i wanted to bring some weights in here and i wanted to have a strong man to carry the weights in here and i wanted to have someone to lift them and couldn't lift him and then have someone else to come alongside him and my husband said no don't do that that might embarrass somebody so i decided we're not going to do that but in my own mind i'm thinking about why do i what do i do regularly that is a weight what do i carry that's a weight for me and it's waters we get these waters i don't know 24 or 36 i don't know how many different sizes and it's hard for me to carry those things and sometimes it's hard for my husband to carry him too when he hasn't gotten his injections and so a lot of times we have a plan when we get them we're going to work together he gets one side and i get the other side and together we can get them in that car and then we can get them together in the house and that's what a burden bearer does just come alongside and help carry those weights

there are hurting people everywhere but at times we don't know what to say or do to ease their pain do we sometimes we just don't have the words just recently someone called me for help and i listened sister christie i pray with her but i honestly told her i don't have the answers but i can bring you to jesus i can bring you into the throne room of god when we're in these situations here are some practical ways to bear someone else's burdens just be there sometimes we just need to know that someone is there and we're not alone at times the best method of helping is simply to be present during our darkest hours we don't need someone who tries to fix everything we just need a friend and as humans we sometimes we have a tendency we want to fix everything where we try to fix everything and sometimes we can really mess it up so a lot of times we need to just be present be there listen don't attempt to give answers or tell people what to do next injured souls frequently want a listening ear so they can express what's on their mind so just listen just listen let them there's just something that kind of relieves a load also when we can just go to someone and just unload all of our burdens and just pour our heart out and tell them how we feel and just know that they care and that they're listening share never parade yourself as someone who seemingly has all the answers instead allow your own pain and failures to help others be transparent and i think sometimes the best way to help somebody is to to do that to just let them know hey i'm human like you i've gone through things like this and certainly if you've experienced kind the same thing let them know i've been there i know i kind of know what you're doing maybe not exactly how you're feeling but i have been there in these times as well pray

there is a power in speaking people's names before the lord when others hear someone talk to jesus on their behalf healing often starts to take place and we know very well that prayer is one of the greatest things the greatest gifts that we can give somebody and when you think about it different times i know we've heard throughout the years that maybe someone has a situation and at the very moment god burdens someone else for that situation and they begin to pray god has our back we're not alone he knows he cares and he has given us again each other give sometimes helping others involves more than a handshake or a warm hug maybe they need something financial or material one of the best measures of sincerity is how much we're willing to give to others so just be open with your hands and give and and we see this a lot also just recently we took our kids to junior camp and i had several individuals come up to me and want to know is there a camper that needs financial aid is there a camper that needs spending money we also had some sicknesses recently with meals that needed to be prepared and different ones that say hey i'm willing to help if you need any help i'll help that's how we come along and we and we give and we share substitute you may know an individual who bears the burden of caring for someone else if you step in and take his or her place for a while you are emulating your savior he too was a substitute and i know we can't always do that i think in my own situation a lot of times michael will come my my for my husband javen or lindsay will come and help bear that load but then i know that there's been other times here that i know of different sisters that have gone and sat with other sisters in the church and helped relieve a family member of having to stay in all the time so thank you for doing that thank you for being a substitute

another type of burden of sin is guilt galatians 6 and 1 brethren if a man be overtaken in a fault ye which are spiritual restore such a one in the spirit of meekness considering thyself lest thou also be tempted i can just tell you as i was going through this my the lord just really touched my heart there are times in this journey and times in our spiritual family here where we see one of our brothers or sisters fall and the bible tells us when that happens ye which are spiritual and that just basically means the ones that are walk in the spirit living in the spirit have the fruit of the spirit prayed up come along them alongside them and restore them with the spirit of meekness and then it says considering thyself lest thou also be tempted so it's saying stay prayed up stay strong and if you are strong come alongside them help them and make sure you're walking in the spirit so that you don't fall into the same temptation or that you don't fall into to sin yourself don't turn your head away reach out and restore how can we do that it's coming along someone beside someone and saying i love you and i care about you and i believe in you it's it's coming alongside someone and saying i know you've fallen and i know you've had some difficulties but i'm reaching for you

not too long ago i was well actually several years ago i was mentoring a young lady someone that i love very very deeply she went through a hard difficult time and i really didn't know her that well but the lord would send her to me all right send me to her in different church services and i'd go and i'd lay my hand on her and when i did i could feel her burden i had never been in that situation before but i could feel her burden and i could intercede on her behalf many times she told me sister sue you prayed exactly what i needed you knew the burden that i was carrying i decided to mint to her and spend time with her and help her and and as we began to meet and and we'd go out to lunch and we would we would meet and she would pour her heart out when she felt that genuine love and concern she started open her heart about things that she was facing and going through and just some guilt that she was carrying and although she would sit across from me and she would tell me things that she was disappointed in i didn't see those things god allowed me to see her on fire for god working in the kingdom in fact i told her i said you just keep moving forward you just keep reaching out to god i don't see any of those things that you're telling me what do i see i see where you're headed i see where you're going i see what you're going to be and that's what we need someone to come alongside the lord even told me to tell her that there's going to be a time coming when i'm going to be in the background and i'm going to be cheering her on and that's already been happening she's walking in the spirit living in the spirit working in the spirit and that's what we need we need one another we need to not just to hide our head or say i don't see that or you know i'm pretending nothing's happening or nothing's wrong but no i love you you're my brother you're my sister and i'm gonna come alongside you and i'm gonna restore you and help restore you by jesus christ why because don't we want everybody to make it to heaven don't we want everybody to fulfill their purpose here and what what are we doing sister rhonda what are we doing we come alongside when we're literally pulling them from the flames the bible says and some having compassion and some having compassion pulling them from the flames and his sister rhonda always color robin for some reason the reason jesus asked us to be bird and bears is because we are following his example we cannot bear the sin burden but by his example we can bear many of the weights people are experiencing bearing each other's burdens is not always easy it takes time it requires a little sacrifice however god honors that sacrifice a lot of times nobody's going to notice it it's servanthood but god notices it and he's going to honor it and he you give what little you can give and god is going to multiply that and bless it we may not always want to get involved in the lives of others let's just be honest sometimes it gets a little messy sometimes it is time consuming but think of it like this god trust us to come alongside one of our brothers or our sisters and help restore them or to bring encouragement to them in the most difficult times of their lives

i call these divine appointments now there are times when we can all come around and and meet a need of an individual sometimes there's an offering that we take or there's a prayer covering that we do but then there are often times where god sends an individual to an individual and i call those divine appointments because he trusts us with someone else he trusts us with their life and he knows so he just kind of lets our paths cross and he puts a love in our hearts for each other and wow what a joy to see the fruit of our labor when we see our brothers and our sisters restored and flourishing in the kingdom of god amen amen when we see our brothers and sisters flourishing and and living in the kingdom god what a joy and it's worth every minute it's worth every prayer it's worth every investment to see that life restored and what a joy to share in the rejoicing when their burden has been lifted i thought of some of our our family members here that have gone through different kinds of illnesses some of them cancer and then and and we've come alongside them and we have helped bear their burden and then when they when god restores them and restores their health we're rejoicing with them why because we love them we genuinely love them and we care about them how many times have we intended to bring encouragement yet we've we've left encouraged and strengthened ourselves we've done that

i've heard brother buddy say that before in the hospital ministry where he's come alongside someone to to lift them up and strengthen them and he left and encouraged and strengthened and that's what happens when we come along somebody alongside somebody and we try to you know just give them whatever we have it's just the way the lord works he lifts us up and he strengthens us thank the lord that he does that aren't you thankful for the body of christ i'm so thankful for the body of christ and i'll be transparent here we have carried a heavy burden these last couple years but our church family has come alongside of us and helped us carry that burden and i thank each one of you for doing that and i know if you were up here and you had the microphone you could tell your testimony of how you were weighed down heavily with the burden but your church family came alongside and helped you bear that burden you see when my load comes becomes too heavy for me you're called to come alongside me and help me lift the weight of that burden and when yours is too heavy for you i'm called alongside you to help you bear the weight of your burden that's the way a burden bearer works we can't fix each other sometimes i can't fix you and you can't fix me but we can do what the scripture says we can weep with those that weep so what motivates us to be a bird and bear does anybody know it's love love we love one another john 13 34 and 5 a new commandment i give unto you that ye love one another as i have loved you that ye also love one another by this shall all men know that ye are my disciples if you have love one to another in luke chapter 10 an expert in the law questions jesus about loving thy neighbor as thyself who is my neighbor jesus shares the parable of the good samaritan and i'd like there's seven of these verses i'd like to share with you luke 10 verses 30-37 and jesus answering said a certain man went down from jericho and fell among thieves which stripped him of his raiment and wounded him and departed leaving him half dead and by chance there came down a certain priest that way and when he saw him he passed by on the other side and likewise a levite when he was at the place came and looked on him and passed by on the other side but a certain samaritan as he journeyed came where he was and when he saw him he had compassion on him and he went to him and bound up his wounds pouring in oil and wine and set him on his own beasts and brought him to an end and took care of him and on the morrow when he departed he took out two pence and gave to the host and said unto him take care of him and whatsoever thou spence more i will come again i will repay thee which now these three thinketh thou was neighbor unto him that fell among the thieves and he said he that showed mercy on him then jesus said unto him go and do thou likewise

jesus explained that the neighbor is the one who showed mercy to the injured man he was the good samaritan the good samaritan risked his own well-being and hostility from others to bear the burdens of a man robbed and wounded by thieves the good samaritan helped by carrying the man's burdens by caring for his physical needs and pain for his room and board that's love and action that's a burden bearer we might say i love you i love you i love you where's the action what are we doing are we praying are we coming alongside to help them financially are we helping them with meals when there's a need of course we are you all have done that so many times thank you for that

galatians 6 and 10. as we have therefore opportunity let us do good unto all men especially unto them who are of the household of faith we're a part of the family now we're part of a natural family and i thank god for our natural family our families are important god instituted the family he knew we would need one another you think about it they're the ones that are going to come alongside of you when that baby's born they're going to be right there and they're the ones that's going to come alongside of us when we pass from this life they're our family but we also have a spiritual family and that's right here and sometimes our spiritual family comes as close to us as our natural family or even more and thank god for that we come alongside each other because we love one another the thing about being a a burden bearer is being sensitive be sensitive to the touch of god to the voice of god to the tug of god the nudge of god when he speaks to you be sensitive and then respond to whatever he's saying timing is everything isn't it it's everything and when we miss it we know we miss it sometimes we miss it and the lord just send he'll send another bird and bear to come alongside that individual if we don't respond i remember sitting over there one time on that side right over there and there was a prodigal sitting in front of me and i loved this prodigal had prayed many prayers for this individual and reached out to this individual and the lord told me to tell him that his eye was on the sparrow and he was watching him and of course i felt a little intimidated i didn't want to tell him that i just really didn't want to say the lord's eyes on the spear when he's watching you but just about the time i was getting ready to lean over and tell them the praise singer started singing that song his eye is on the spiral and i know he watches me taught me a lesson that day if you don't do it if you don't respond if you don't come alongside your brother or your sister i'm going to send somebody else because see we think we know what's going on inside of hearts don't we sometimes we think we do because we see that facade we see the strength we see the one that's praying and moving in the spirit and loving but we don't see the hearts cry like he sees just recently we had a move of the spirit and we had that move of the spirit people just came alongside of each other and just started helping bear one of those burdens it was so beautiful to watch the family of god do that it was so beautiful there was a time i walked through the doors i taught the ladies class back there and i walked through those doors and inside i was screaming out lord help me strengthen me it was a week of suffering if i could say it like that and i i wouldn't appear strong sister crystal i came in to appear strong so i could feed those ladies in the ladies class and then come out here and pour into anybody i couldn't feed them but inside i knew i could not face another day if god didn't touch me if he didn't send somebody to me to help strengthen me so

i remember standing when the altar call was called i remember standing up and i said lord i'll be obedient and i'll go pour into anybody you tell me to pour into i'm willing but lord if you can and if you will i'm asking you just to send somebody to me i need that strength today i waited no one came and i waited and no one came and then finally just said okay lord i guess that means i need to go and pray for my brothers and sisters and just as i was getting ready to step out a sister pointed her finger at me and she just i mean she was very dramatic and she said sister sue i'm coming for you know only eternity knows what happened in that moment and she had told me i struggled with it i the lord had already told me i knew i was to do it and she said i just kept waiting and finally i couldn't resist i thank god that she was obedient don't ever think that your prayers aren't adequate or that someone is stronger in their faith than you are more spiritual than you are that you can't come alongside them and help them bear their burden you can and when god uses you he gets all the glory all the glory and all the honor

i was trying to think of another time and pardon the personal testimonies but i just want to kind of relate this message to you i remember my husband first became sick and he had been sick for a while and we were trying to figure out how to tell the church we didn't have any answers really didn't know what was going on and we're trying to wait for the right time and i just remember coming out of the ladies class again and sister river was singing she was leading the praise team and i just felt like i've got to get up there and i've got to get strength and it's a it's a picture in my mind something i don't think i'll ever forget in fact different ones took pictures of it and they've sent me pictures of it so i have it to look back on but it's a time when pastor let the church know about my husband and what we're facing and i felt such a love from this family of god i felt such a love that people came together just started coming towards us we do that for you also sister toby i remember with your mom coming alongside at you and helping you i remember that we are a brother and sister we're there for one another right right so let's restore one another in the faith let's come alongside one another and say i'm here for you yeah it might take a little bit of time it may pull me away from my family just a little bit but i'm here for you because you're also a part of my family right and i know we don't usually do this but

i'm asking if you've come into this place tonight and you're carrying a heavy load you are carrying a burden that has weighed you down i'm asking you just to come up front if you if you need prayer i'm asking you just to come up front god knows i don't believe it was a coincidence that i was asked to share this message be a burden bearer why because we can feel that heaviness our brothers and our sisters come up here that are having burdens that they're carrying come on it's there's time come on up here we are here for you brother reaver and brother michael if you can come and help pray and then also for these they're gonna pray for the ones that are bearing burdens tonight to lift those heavy loads and if you want to be a burden bearer come on up it's your opportunity to pour into others come on up and bear their burdens