“There is no soundness in my flesh, because of your anger, nor any health in my bones because of my sin. For my iniquities have gone over my head, like a heavy burden they are too heavy for me.” Psalm 38:3-4 (NKJ)

New Year’s Resolutions: You thought about them. You made them. You promised yourself you would keep them and then you broke them. It’s a useless activity that most women engage themselves in at the beginning of each new year. Usually about this time of year is when I begin to feel the need to make new New Year’s resolutions for the year in progress, since I have already failed to keep the resolutions I made just a few months ago.

This year when I began my annual re-evaluation process of resolutions, I began asking myself, “Do I really want to set myself up for failure by making promises to myself that I know I probably will not keep due to my desires or lack of willpower?” My honest answer was, “No!” My normal resolutions are important, such as getting in shape, losing weight, eating healthier, and balancing my checkbook better, but these things seemed to pale in comparison when I considered the goals I could set that would affect my eternal life, not merely my earthly life.

There are always going to be things we want to change, fix, or improve about ourselves, but the most important resolution we can make each year is to enhance our walk with Jesus. Unfortunately, walking with Jesus every day will not help shed any pounds from our physical bodies! But better yet, we can shed a different kind of weight – the weight from life that burdens our hearts. Such weights include unforgiveness, stress, worry, sin, and guilt. If these feelings are constant in our every day lives, the weight of these emotions can have detrimental affects on our physical bodies, including headaches, weight gain, high blood pressure, digestive problems, and the list goes on. These weights can also crush our spirits, and eventually put a strain on our relationship with our Savior. Drowning in worry and other destructive emotions separates us from the peace that Christ intended for us to have.

When our hearts are weighed down with burdens that we have not lifted up to heaven, the fruit of our life can become spoiled. How can we be encouraging and uplifting to other people, when we do not feel encouraged and uplifted ourselves? How can we teach our children to forgive others and love them, when we are harboring anger and feelings of unforgiveness in our heart? How can we witness to people in need of a Savior, when we aren’t calling on the Savior in our own hard times? So you see, when we are lugging around all that extra weight, it not only affects our physical and spiritual health, but it can also impact those around us.

If you have been feeling burdened, discouraged, lacking in confidence, or unworthy in any capacity, take a moment to consider what is weighing down your heart. Is there someone who needs your forgiveness? Are you wasting time fretting and worrying about circumstances in your life, which you have no control over? Are you frustrated about a seemingly hopeless situation with your spouse, children, boss, friend, etc? Dear sister in Christ, LET GO OF THOSE THINGS!

We don’t always have control over things that happen in our life, but we do have control over our own choices. We can choose to be weighed down by burdens, or choose to lift them up to Christ and free ourselves from the bondage of stress and worry. Are you ready to start losing some weight today?

Dear Lord, Open my eyes to the things in my life that are weighing heavily on my heart and soul. Forgive me for not releasing those things to You. Give me the strength to let go of those burdens and not ever pick them up again, knowing that You are in control and will carry all of my weights for me. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

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Related Resources:

Do you know Him?

Reinventing Your Rainbow by Tracie Miles

Traveling Light: Releasing the Burdens You Were Never Intended to Bear by Max Lucado

Application Steps:

Take some time to reflect on the things that are weighing on your heart today.

Spend time in prayer, releasing those burdens to the Lord.

Reflections:

Am I harboring negative feelings towards someone, souring my heart?

Are my actions towards those I love a reflection of the peace and love that I hold in my heart through Christ?

Has my physical health changed as a result of allowing myself to become consumed with stress and worry?

Power Verses:

Psalm 68:19, “Praise be to the Lord, to God our Savior, who daily bears our burdens.” (NIV)

Matthew 6:27, “Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?” (NIV)

Psalm 121:1, “I lift up my eyes to the hills— where does my help come from?” (NIV)