Bearing one another's burdens

Many of us were taught to be independent: to handle our own problems, pay our own way and not bother anyone. Those are good instincts in many ways. But there comes a time in every life, for some sooner and for some later, when the load is too much for one person. Paul's short instruction to the churches in Galatia speaks to that moment.

"Bear ye one another’s burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ." (Galatians 6:2, King James Version)

Not a sign of failure

Notice that Paul does not say, "Carry your burdens alone, and help others only when they have no other choice." He describes burden-sharing as normal Christian life. Needing help is not a failure of character. It is the ordinary condition of people who belong to each other.

If you use mobility equipment or rely on others for parts of your day, you are not a burden in the sense of being unwanted. You are a member of the body, and the body carries its own.

Just a few verses later, Paul adds that each person should carry their own load. The two ideas fit together. There are things each of us is responsible for, and there are weights too heavy for anyone to lift alone. Wisdom is knowing the difference, and humility is being willing to say which is which.

Both directions

"One another" goes both ways. The person who receives help has things to give too: prayer, wisdom, encouragement, a listening ear, a sense of humor that lifts the room. Caregivers often say they have been changed for the better by the people they care for. In God's family, no one is only a giver or only a receiver.

The law of Christ

Paul calls this "the law of Christ." Jesus summed up the law as loving God and loving your neighbor as yourself, and then He lived it out. He carried the heaviest burden of all when He bore our sins on the cross. Every time we help each other carry something, we are following the path He walked first.

Ways to share the load

• If you need help, name one specific thing and ask one specific person. Specific requests are easier to say yes to.
• If you are a caregiver, let someone else carry part of your load: a meal, an errand, an afternoon off.
• In your church or small group, ask what burdens people are carrying, and listen.

Burdens shared are not always lighter in weight, but they are always lighter to carry. That is how the family of God was meant to live.

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Sources

• Galatians 6, King James Version (eBible.org)