My Burden

My vacation has come and gone and it has resulted in another vacation. Last week Tuesday through Saturday I was off of all my medicine, I began some of my pills on Sunday and my symptoms worsened. I tried to tough it out a couple days but I kept getting worse. Again my nurse Angela recommended me to get off of all medicine except supplements. 

Yesterday was my first day off of my medicine again. I have been given a week off of medicine and if my symptoms are not gone by a week I will have to add more pills to detox the dead bacteria. The main problem these last few weeks is that the medicine has been working faster than my body can handle. The medicine is killing the lyme bacteria and my body cant detox it out. I am doing detox smoothies and detox foot/hand baths but my body is still on overload. 

These last few weeks have been hard on my physically as you know but they have also been hard on me spiritually. I realized yesterday that I was trying to fight this by myself. I was using my strength, I was trying to handle lyme by myself. I had picked up my burdens again.  

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This is an excerpt from the book Do you Think I'm Beautiful. By Angela Thomas. 

A traveler was walking down the road laboring under the heavy burden he was carrying on his back. Along came a man with a horse-drawn cart. Pulling alongside the traveler, the cart driver said, "Sir, I see that you are carrying a heavy load and that it makes you weary. Wouldn't you rather ride in my cart than carry that heavy burden?"

"Yes," the traveler said as he got into the cart. "Now I will no longer have to walk with this burden." A little farther down the road the cart driver looked behind him and was quite astonished to see the traveler sitting in the cart still carrying his burden, held tightly on his back. 

"Sir, why do you still bend under the weight of your burden when you could simply set it down?" he asked. "You have helped me so much already," said the traveler, "I wouldn't want to impose on you any further." 

"But don't you see," replied the cart driver, "it would not be an imposition on me for you to put your burden down. Look at my horse; he is strong and willing. He was made to carry heavy burdens. Besides, both of you are now carrying your load, yet my horse will carry your load whether you do or not! So please put your burden down or you will wear yourself out and make my horse feel unappreciated." 

Belief requires us to climb into the cart and then put everything down. When we put the full weight of our lives on the Lord, then we give Him the authority to take over. 

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Just like the man in this cart so are we in the arms of God, if we simply choose to let go of our burdens then we may have the rest that the Lord is longing to give us. Two weeks ago I choose to pick up my burden again and I am so thankful for the reminder to let it go. I can not handle my problems, I can not handle my pain. Christ is the one who gives me strength, He is my endurance. It doesn't matter where I am at but rather who Christ is and what He has done for me. May we always remember to keep our gaze focused on Him and not our situation. 

Finally be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might. ~ Ephesians 6:10 

Do not be grieved for the joy of the Lord is your strength. ~ Nehemiah 8:10b 

Prayer Requests:
*That I can keep my gaze on Christ
*That my symptoms will go away so I can begin medicine again
*That I will be able to remain a student
*That I can keep up in my classes
*That I will never again pick up the burden of lyme disease but let God carry it