WENESDAY 17.01.2018
DAY 7
I DON'T WANT TO BE A BURDEN
READING OF THE DAY : 2 THESSALONIANS 3:8
When I say "I DON'T WANT TO BE A BURDEN", it is not a slogan. It is a mindset, a principle and a lifestyle of the kingdom of God.
Jesus our Lord gives rest to those who come to him. He does not only gives rest, he also gives his burden which is never and will never be grievous to anybody.
In Matthew 11:30, he says, "For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light."
When we read the Bible, particularly the apostle Paul, we will notice that one of his principle in ministry was the same as his Master Jesus. He never allowed himself to be a burden to others.
We read in 2 Corinthians 12:14,
'Now I am ready to visit you for the third time, and I WILL NOT BE A BURDEN TO YOU, because what I want is not your possessions but you. After all, children should not have to save up for their parents, but parents for their children. ( New International Version)
Again, we read in 1 Thessalonians 2:9,
For you remember, brethren, our labor and travail: for laboring night and day, because WE WOULD NOT BE A BURDEN UNTO ANY OF YOU, we preached unto you the gospel of God.
In 2 Thessalonians 3:8, the same Paul says again
Neither did we eat any man's bread for nought; but wrought with labour and travail night and day, that we might NOT BE CHARGEABLE to any of you:
WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU ARE A BURDEN TO OTHERS ?
1) You will lose respect from others
2) You will live as a liability
3) It means you are not adding value to others
4) You will never ever be happy
5) It means you are living contrary to the principles of the kingdom
6) You will live focused on what you can get from others rather than on what you can give to others.
7) You will be given contemptuous names that will kill your dignity
WHAT TO DO TO NOT BE A BURDEN TO OTHERS?
1) BE HARDWORKING AND DILIGENT NOT LAZY
In order for Paul to not be a burden to others, he made up his mind to be diligent and hardworking. That is what he says in 2 Thessalonians 3:8:
"Neither did we eat any man’s bread for nought; but wrought with labour and travail night and day, that we might not be chargeable to any of you"
2) BE A GIVER NOT A BEGGAR
In our covenant with the Lord, we are ordained to be givers and not beggars. Living as a beggar is therefore anti-covenantal and a curse.
In Psalms 37:25, David, the covenantal man says,
"I have been young, and [now] am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread."
3) STOP HAVING DELIGHT IN FREE LUNCH IN LIFE
In 2 Thessalonians 3:8, the same Paul says again
"Neither did we eat any man's bread for nought"
= ENOUGH IS ENOUGH PRAYER =
PRAYER 1 Some situations will not change in your life until you are angry enough to change them. Enough is enough. It must change.
Read and pray with Deuteronomy 1:6 "The LORD our God spake unto us in Horeb, saying, Ye have dwelt long enough in this mount:.. "
PRAYER 2 Living as a burden to others is a proof of immaturity. It's similar to living as a small child whose needs are dependent on parents. Enough is enough. It must change.
Read and pray with 1 Corinthians 13:11 "When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things."
PRAYER 3 To live as a burden to others is living like this paralytic in the Bible that people carried and deposited at the door of the temple to beg. Enough is enough. It must change.
Read and pray with Matthew 9:6 "But that ye may know that the Son of man hath power on earth to forgive sins, (then saith he to the sick of the palsy,) Arise, take up thy bed, and go unto thine house."
PRAYER 4 God's plan for you is not to live as a burden that others bear, but as the one who helps others carry their burdens. Enough is enough. It must change.
Read and pray with Galatians 6:2 "Bear ye one another’s burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ."
PRAYER 5 When you live as a burden, the people who carry you will be tired of you and let you down along the way as was the case of Mephibosheth in 2 Samuel 4: 4 "...and it came to pass, as she made haste to flee, that he fell, and became lame. And his name was Mephibosheth." Enough is enough. It must change.
Read and pray with 2 Thessalonians 3:8 "Neither did we eat any man’s bread for nought; but wrought with labour and travail night and day, that we might not be chargeable to any of you:"
SO SHALL IT BE!
JESUS IS LORD!
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