Sunday Musings

A few weeks ago I went visiting teaching and it was my turn to give the lesson. I had been thinking about General Conference and which talk I thought would be good to share. After thumbing through the Ensign and thinking about the sisters that we visit and some things I had been pondering about the last few months, I chose That Your Burdens May Be Light by Elder L. Whitney Clayton.

As I have been struggling with this and this for what seems like and feels like an interminable amount of time, I have thought on this scripture passage and this scripture many times wondering how I could apply them to my situation. I thought that by sharing the talk by Elder Clayton I might be able to get some more insight as to how it applies to my situation while helping those that I visit who struggle with their own burdens as well.

I introduced the talk and summarized the message. I told them that I really believed that Christ can lift our burdens and had faith in that principle. I then posed the question "How does the Savior literally lift our burdens? (Or does He literally lift our burdens?) For example, if someone is having financial difficulties, He generally does not put a sack of money on their doorstep. In my situation, if He could come down and clean my house that would literally lift my burden. But that doesn't happen. So how does it work in our lives?"

After posing the question, I just sat and listened to their answers because I didn't have an answer. I really wanted to know what they thought.

And then for me, an answer came. While the first sister we were visiting was talking about her experiences, a thought came distinctly to my mind. "Your burdens right now are being lifted by Matthew. Your burdens right now are being lifted by Matthew. And, you don't have to worry about things financially." I knew I had an answer for right now.

I thought about that the rest of the day and realized how true that answer was for me at this time. Matthew does truly lift my burdens when I am exhausted (which is most of the time.) If I were in Matthew's shoes, I would be pretty darn tired of  hearing "I'm tired...." again and again and again from me. He has NEVER been frustrated at my exhaustion and only suggests that I go rest some more.

He works extremely hard at everything he does and yet in the almost 21 years we have been married, I can count on less than one hand the number of times he has come home from work or church responsiblities and even sat down. No matter how tired he is, his first concern is always how I am feeling and what he can do to help me. (No, Matthew is not perfect---as noted here. There are things that drive me crazy at times; however, out of all the people I know, I do think his intentions and heart are pretty perfect.)

There are so many things that frustrate me about being so exhausted, especially if it is particularly bad for several days or weeks in a row. During those times, I am lucky to do the wash and get dinner on the table. The kids are pretty good about helping out, but my piles of "to do" things pile up so quickly and seem to multiply like rabbits during those days and weeks. He has NEVER looked around at the piles or un-done jobs (which can be abundent at times) and asks "What did you do all day?" He only asks what I would like him to help with.

That HAS definitely eased my burdens (and guilt about what I don't get done.) He has also taught our children so much about loving and serving not only by his example, but by getting them to help out more.

"And you don't have to worry about things financially." This is very true as well. I have often had the thought (especially during this time of economic meltdown) that I don't know what I would do if I had to work outside the home---how I would cope with the day. With Matthew's consulting work, he only gets paid for the hours he works---there is no vacation, holiday or sick pay. With the stuggling economy, there were times when we thought it might be a little rough being that companies were cutting back in so many areas. Consulting is an easy thing to cut for most companies. However, the Lord has truly blessed us with enough work (and more) for Matthew and financially things have not been a worry. I KNOW that even if things were rocky with the consulting, Matthew would do anything to support our family.

I am blessed to know that.

I'm interested in knowing how this talk/scripture has worked in your life....