Chunk that Burden!

Psalm 55:22
Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and he shall sustain thee; he shall never suffer the righteous to be moved.

This is the text of one of my all-time favorite sermons.  I first heard it when I was probably a Junior in high school.  Our church had just gone through a horrible time - our very prominent pastor of many years had admitted to a great indiscretion, and we were devastated.  He left, of course, and we were all reeling.  As a teen with limited understanding, this situation added to my disappointment in Christians in general and put yet another person on my list of hypocrites.  And yet ... I always knew GOD was good and fair and righteous; I knew He didn't like what had happened too much either.  Thankfully, God sent us a pastor who only stayed for two years but who got me through high school and who helped our congregation heal. 

The man was Dr. Harold Clayton, a tall Texan who gave the most hilarious yet poignant sermons.  He captured the attention and the hearts of all ages.  He and his wife were what I considered the first Christians in leadership who were "real" ... they allowed us to know their struggles; they were humble servants; and yet they were strong Christians who exuded God's love.  

This week, I have been feeling very heavy-hearted for many situations and many people.  I have always had an issue with this, and much more so while I was working at our church & its Christian school.  As the secretary, I knew a lot about people's struggles and family situations.  Sometimes I had to know because our pastor or a teacher was having to deal with those people; sometimes people would come by and because as the receptionist, I was the first person they saw, they would dump their problems on me.  The people who did this usually left feeling better or at least oblivious ... and I went home weary and burdened and sleepless, thinking about the awful situations people got into or had to endure.  "Stuff" bothered me.  Even now, my husband is the administrator of the school, and I know some of what he deals with every day.  Right now there are a few situations that are just hard.  I feel his burden ... and for him as a very sympathetic man, he feels them heavily too even though I know he can handle them just fine.  I guess I am feeling burdered for him too even though he doesn't even need me to!  :-/

Which brings me back to the sermon and the verse above.  I googled it this morning - and I found a transcript of the sermon!!!  What a blessing!  I could almost hear Pastor Clayton's Texas drawl as I read the familiar words.  I heard him preach the sermon a second time when I was in college, and he was a speaker at our yearly Bible Conference.  I remember listening with tears running down my face to hear his words of comfort and understanding as he shared God's promises from His Word.  (And you have to know I am NOT normally a "crier" so the fact that I bawled is truly memorable to me.)

I really needed to "hear" those words again today ... and I need to take my burdens and cast them on the Lord today.   Here is an excerpt from the sermon - I wish I had a youtube video of it because Pastor Clayton's actions sometimes spoke louder than his words.  He was a very physical speaker, and I can just see him acting out FLINGING .... HURLING ... CHUNKING the burden: 

2. Let the Lord carry the burden for you. Since the burden is too heavy for you, give it to the Lord to carry.

The word cast literally means "fling or hurl." It requires and denotes action and effort. "Fling" that burden upon the Lord! "Cast" that burden upon the Lord! Or as they say in Texas, "‘Chunk’ that burden upon the Lord!"

Daniel 6:16 tells us that they cast Daniel "into the den of lions." The king’s men got Daniel by the nape of the neck and flung him into the lions’ den. It took some action on their part, but they did it.

Jonah 1:15 tells us, "So they took up Jonah, and cast him forth into the sea." The sailors got Jonah by the nape of the neck, and they hurled him into the sea. It took some action on their part, but they did it.

Matthew 4:12 also uses that same word: "Now when Jesus had heard that John was cast into prison, he departed into Galilee." The guards got John by the nape of the neck, and they "chunked" him into prison. It took some action on their part, but they did it.

That word is found again in Revelation 20:10: "And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone." Jesus is going to get the Devil by the nape of the neck and fling him into the lake of fire and brimstone. It will take some action on Jesus’ part, but He will do it.

"Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and he shall sustain thee: he shall never suffer the righteous to be moved" (Ps. 55:22). Hurl that burden upon the Lord! Fling that burden upon the Lord! "Chunk" that burden upon the Lord! It will take some action on your part, but you can do it! ‘Cast your burden upon the Lord!’

The Bible teaches that the Lord is the great Burden-bearer. His gracious words to the saints are: "Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you" (I Pet. 5:7). How wonderful to know that Jesus cares!


If you'd like to read the beginning and ending of the sermon, you can find it HERE.