Cast your burden on the LORD, and he will sustain you; he will never permit the righteous to be moved.Psalm 55:22 (ESV)
In times of trial our comfort rests in knowing that we have a sovereign God who desires for us to come to him with every burden. Not one particle in the universe is beyond his control. The trust we place in God when we come to him for help is one of the highest forms of worship we can perform. The casting of our burden on him is, in a nutshell, saying, “Father, you are the only one who can sustain me. You are my help. For better or for ill, I believe in you. I come to you for grace to help in time of need.”
Our existence is not a product of chance or randomness. We exist by the will of a sovereign God who not only knows our burden but also prepared it for us. The word David used for burden in Psalm 55 means “what is given, lot, or by providence.” In his book “The Crook in the Lot”, Thomas Boston wrote, “Whatever crook there is in one’s lot, it is of God’s making.”
God has assigned each of us our portion or lot in this life. David wrote, Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me, when as yet there was none of them. (Psalm 139:16 ESV) God saw us in our mother’s womb—our days were formed (squeezed into shape like a potter, molded into form, determined) for us before we were born. (Psalm 139:15-16). Boston continues, “There is not anything whatsoever befalls us, without his overruling hand. Providence that brought us out of the womb, brings us to, and fixes us in the condition and place allotted for us, by him who hath determined the times and the bounds of our habitation.”
We can be assured that whatever burden comes to us has been ordained by a loving Father who will always do what is best for us (Romans 8:28). And we are to look to him to enable us to bear it for his glory. Our heavenly father will never tire of us casting our burden upon him.
In Psalm 55 David is exhorting us to throw or to hurl upon Yahweh whatever his providence has purposed in our lives. Our covenant God takes interest in us. He concerns himself in our affairs. The apostle Peter commands us to cast all of our anxieties on God because he cares for us (1 Peter 5:7). When we throw our burden on God we will discover that a bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not quench, until he brings justice to victory (Matthew 12:20 ESV). God will not kick us when we are down. Our Father will sustain us and never allow us to be moved from his presence and care.
God’s response to us when we cast our burden on him is expressly seen in the life of his son, Jesus Christ. Jesus beckons us, Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. (Matthew 11:28-30 ESV) Think not that God in the Old Testament is the “bad cop” while Jesus in the New Testament is the “good cop.” Jesus is the exact imprint of God’s nature (Hebrews 1:3). What we find in God the son, we find in God the father.
From the Treasury of David: “Thy burden, or what thy God lays upon thee, lay thou it upon the Lord. His wisdom casts it on thee, it is thy wisdom to cast it on him. He cast thy lot for thee, cast thy lot on him. He gives thee thy portion of suffering, accept it with cheerful resignation, and then take it back to him by thine assured confidence.” Lift your eyes to the hills. Your help comes from the Lord (Psalm 121:1-2).
What lot has God appointed for you? Have you cast your burden on the Lord?
Scriptures for meditation:
Philippians 4:6