The Burden

Matthew 11:29-30, "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.  Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For my yoke is easy and my burden light."

My Father died about 3 and one half years ago.  Since then, I have been spending a lot of time with my Mom.  We watch TV, go for walks in the park, and sometimes we shop.  We do laundry together and I pick up groceries when she needs them.  I also take her dog, Sunny, to the groomer and the vet for her.  These are not extra ordinary things but my Mom believes that she is a burden to me.  As much as I try to persuade her that she's not, she insists that she is.

The definition of burden is; anything carried or endured, a very heavy load; whatever is hard to bear.

That is the definition, and she is none of those things under the definition of a burden, just as children are not a burden to me, they are joys in my life, my family is my life.

In a letter written by Paul, the Bible says, "Children obey your parents in the Lord for this is right.  Honor your Father and Mother, which is the first commandment with a promise that it may go well with you and that you may enjoy a long life on earth."

My Mom has always been there for me.  Let me share a few of the things she has done for me.  I have never been to well off financially and she helps when ever I ask, no questions.  I went through one of my difficult times after I gave birth to my two boys.  I had a hard time keeping up with everything in my home so my Mom would gather my laundry once a week, wash it, fold it and deliver it back to me.  Also after my son Elijah was born, she and my Dad took care of Elijah three days a week so I could work, what a help that was.

My Mom and I had some bad times when I was in High School.  I was a terrible kid, always getting into trouble.  My Mom could have disconnected like so many Mothers do these days, but instead, she bought books to learn how to deal with my behavior, she went to counselors and the Church, to get help dealing with me, and she never gave up on me even when I gave up on myself.

My Mom has also been a big encouragement to me, in my life.  I can still remember bringing home a drawing that I did in High School, I put it next to the front door so that I could take it out to the trash, but before I could throw it away, she saw it and she took it.  She bought a frame for it and hung it in our home.  I really got passionate about art because of that.

1 timothy 5:3, "Give proper recognition to those widows who are really in need.  But if a widow has children or grandchildren, these should learn first of all to put their religion into practice by caring for their own family and so repaying their parents and grandparents, for this is pleasing to God.

I love my Mom deeply.  I want to repay all she has done for me, but I know I could never do enough.  I also want to please God by helping my Mom.  My Mom is not a burden and even if she would become one, Jesus takes our burdens and makes our yoke light, as in Matthew 11:29-30.  So if she was going to pick one thing to remember, in her life, I hope that she remembers how much she means to me.