Carrying Burdens

Each of us well know that “there is a broken heart in every pew.” We are one of them and are well-familiar with the agonies associated with heartbreak, and we know that to love our neighbors well means to care for them well. And yet, how we care for those broken hearts remains a challenge. Whereas our doctor may say, “Take two pills and call me in the morning,” what do we say to those silent at the funeral home? Or to those dealing with chronic pain? Or to those grieving months and years after a tragic loss? We often feel as if we said too much or said too little because we simply do not know what to say.

The Bible is not grief-averse. The Bible was penned in a deep valley of tears, by those who suffered setbacks and disappointments, by those who lost loved ones and those unable to conceive loved ones, and by those well-acquainted with heartbreak. From this deep valley springs the comforts and cures fitted for those deep in affliction. Over the course of the next ten weeks, we will spend time learning how to gather these promises in our hand and carry them to those in need so that we may be able to “bear [carry] one another’s burdens” (Gal. 6:2).

1. Foundations for Caring

2. Being Cared For

3. The Caregiver’s Toolbox: The Word

4. The Caregiver’s Toolbox: The Presence

5. The Caregiver’s Toolbox: The Ear

6. The Caregiver’s Toolbox: The Prayer

7. The Caregiver’s Toolbox: The Memory

8. The Caregiver’s Challenge: Despair

9. The Caregiver’s Challenge: Enemies

10. The Caregiver’s Challenge: Failure