Do You Know Where to Turn?

If I asked you, “When your life turns upside down, do you know where to turn?” As a Christian you may respond quickly, “Yes, to God.” Yet, knowing and doing are two separate things. I believe that is why there are several Scriptures on not being anxious or being drawn into worry. For an individual may start out at first turning to God, but then along the path veer off in another direction.

Corrie Ten Boom stated, “If you look at the world, you’ll be distressed. If you look within, you’ll be depressed. If you look at God, you’ll be at rest.” This sounds pretty simple, but in our own flesh is hard to do. I am prayerfully covering many who are experiencing some deep tragedies and trials in their lives that could easily lead to a spiritual meltdown.

Psalm 55 was written by David who was experiencing anguish over being afflicted and being betrayed. In wisdom he knew where to turn to as it states in Psalm 55:22:

“Cast your burden on the Lord, And He shall sustain you; He shall never permit the righteous to be moved.”

In this Psalm we are given instructions as to what we are to do and what response we can expect from our Lord.
 

Cast Your Burden on the Lord:

The psalmist came to realize that the best course of action in time of troubles is not to turn to the world or even oneself, but to cast your burdens upon the Lord. This is a true test of our faith. The same faith we placed in Jesus to forgive and to remove all our sins and to give us eternal life, is the same faith we must exercise when tragedy and grief overtake us. The same One we turned to and casted our sins upon is the same One we can turn to and cast our burdens upon.

To “cast” shows the action of throwing off, getting rid of, or discarding. You are not holding onto the burden but becoming unburden by quickly throwing it upon the One who will sustain you. Casting is entrusting your burdens to the Lord (1 Peter 5:7). You haven’t truthfully cast it upon Him if you are still burdened by it. It is a relief and refreshing to know that He will always allow you to turn to Him to do so.

Turning to the Lord, having confident trust that He will sustain you through this, is your responsibility and the key to victory. David said in verse 23, “But as for me, I trust in you.”
 

He Shall Sustain You:

Once we handle our responsibility, then we will experience the sustaining power of our Lord. To sustain means to provide what is needed, to support or hold up, to bring relief, to abide, etc. Notice the words, “shall” in the verse. There’s no question as to what the Lord will do.

Now don’t get things mixed up. Burdens have divine purposes in our lives. Casting our burdens is revealing our trust in Him, but it does not say that He will remove the heaviness altogether. As you trust in Him, He will sustain you and not permit the enemy to utterly destroy you (1 Cor. 10:13). Settle in your heart that He knows what is best for you, that He is the creator and sustainer of all things, and you will be at rest having placed your life (along with its burdens) in His Hands.