Some people carry it in their shoulders, you can see it in their posture, how they sit and how they stand. Others carry it in their eyes, fleeting looks and stares that go a thousand miles. We all think we can hide it, bury it so people can’t see it, or avoid it so we don’t have to talk about it. But if you watch someone long enough, if you talk to them and listen to how they speak, you can see where they carry it, and more often then not you’ll start to see what it is.

Richard Simmons III calls it the invisible burden. It’s what we carry around with us 24/7, what haunts us, doubts us, holds us back, and torments us. Sometimes we carry it because we don’t know how to let it go, other times it’s because we haven’t really figured out what it is, and on a few occasions we carry it around because it is just as dangerous to let it go, as it is to keep it. We try and ward of prying eyes and open ended questions with different attitudes. We use our egos to shield ourselves from being honest, and in that way we avoid ever having to confront it.

We live in a life that demands comparison. We compare ourselves to our family, our friends, complete strangers, and even sometimes to people who don’t exist. In his book The True Measure of a Man, Richard Simmons III writes that, “We all desire to be delivered from our fears. It can be quite tiring to live each day trying to impress others, always wonder, what will people think of me? And though we do everything we can to divert our thoughts from the fear of death, we are continually being reminded that we are mere mortals, and one day our lives will come to an end. We carry this invisible burden around silently, not really knowing what to do with it.” The release of our invisible burden begins when we accept Matthew 11:28-30. “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”

We all carry around different burdens, but they aren’t always as invisible as we think. Just because we avoid them doesn’t mean they aren’t there. Some people have a hard time accepting and understanding what it looks like to give their burdens to Christ. The idea of having a savior who loves you no matter what, will forgive you no matter what, and will be there for us not matter what we do is like nothing we will experience anywhere else. It literally doesn’t make sense. In fact, Christ’s love for us is so cut and dried that it seems to simple.

When we accept that there is hope in eternity and we begin to believe in a life beyond this one, we start to hand that burden over to God. It doesn’t have to be an elaborate act, nor does it have to be done in public. Most times it is just a small step, one of many that our heart will make as we begin to relinquish control and pass off our burdens to Christ. The release of an invisible burden is different for everyone, but it is rooted in three main things. It requires forgiveness, responsibility, and a humble heart. Without those three things we will continue to struggle through life, yet claiming to be okay. I struggle with this daily. In an attempt to assert my true masculinity as a man, the world has taught me that I need to be perfect and hard, and that weakness is a sign of mediocrity.  But I try and counter that by acknowledging that I am human, and that I have struggles and burdens that I deal with on a daily basis. For me, I do that through using my own struggles as examples to try and help others, but for you it might look differently. We aren’t all the same, and we all handle things differently. So as long as you stick to forgiving yourself and others, taking responsibility for your actions, and humbling your heart to God and those around you, you will begin to see as your invisible burdens become lighter and lighter as they are lifted off of your shoulders.