“Lighten up!”  I said this a few times to my parents when I was a teen forgetting that this not-so-witty phrase didn’t always result in the best reaction from them.  When I used to say “lighten up,”  it was a verbal face slap, a dismissal of my parent’s urgent statement or directive. It was trying to get them to ease up on me or to “chill out” when I didn’t want to take something seriously that probably was important now that I look at this i hindsight.  As I got older, I was more often on the receiving end of “lighten up.” I would come unglued about a situation or circumstance that wasn’t going my way and my super mellow husband would deliver a “lighten up” or a “stressing about it won’t make it any better” (this one’s for all you road ragers), or my personal favorite – “chillax honey – it’s not that big a deal.” There’s a kind of flippant, rebellious tone to the term “lighten up” but it can also hold a simple but profound truth. We aren’t physically and mentally designed to worry, fear or have anxiety.

As a Christian, you are not designed to carry the heavy burdens of life alone.  You are actually designed to “Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.”  I Peter 5:6   Embracing the redemptive work of Jesus on the cross sets us free from the heaviness of sin, sickness and death, lightening our burdens.  But, the fact remains that we still live in a fallen world full of problems. 

Each day we face challenges both big and small.  Our minds, souls and spirits are like sponges, sopping up the hurts and offenses around us.  Without a deliberate action of first trusting our Maker and, then “humbling ourselves before God… casting our anxieties on the Lord” moment-by-moment, day-by-day, we can quickly become overburdened, cynical, hurt, and defensive.  So how do we navigate the difficulties of life without picking up all kinds of physical, emotional and spiritual baggage?

In this blog we will explore the amazing truth of God as our burden bearer and walk through practical ways of unpacking the heavy baggage we carry inside.  Jesus came to “set the captives free.”  Learning to embrace this simple truth will help us to discover how to walk in peace and joy knowing that your God cares for you!  So, are you ready?  Let’s lighten up!