Why We Need to Hand Over Our Burdens to Jesus

Giving up control is never easy.
One of the most emotionally gut wrenching scenes in the movie, “The Shack” is when Mack is forced to hand over the body of his deceased daughter to Jesus. As one might imagine, the pain and anger surrounding his daughter’s unexpected death at the hands of another man consumed him. Even his wife and other children had yearned for healing and restoration. But Mack’s complicated history had resulted in fearing the consequences of surrender. Control had become a comfortable “garment.”  Despite his earlier interactions with Papa, Jesus, the Holy Spirit and the character Wisdom, Mack refused to let go of his burdens.
But holding on keeps us hostage.
Mack came to my mind a few years ago as I found myself in a dark place. An unexpected descent into depression created a heaviness in my soul. In the midst of it, guilt, fear, and anger were evoked as a  video of past events played repeatedly in my mind. I recognized that Jesus was beckoning me to hand the weight of these situations over to him. Initially I imagined myself placing it at his feet. But then I realized that I easily could run back, pick it up, and regain control.
Then Mack came to mind. Just as I saw Mack transfer his daughter’s body to Jesus hands, I pictured myself placing my weights onto his open arms.
Once, he grasps our burdens from us, it’s hard to grab them back.
What are you afraid of relinquishing? Jesus’ arms are outstretched and waiting.
“Truth is, You know what tomorrow brings
There’s not a day ahead You have not seen
So let all things be my life and breath
I want what You want Lord and nothing less”  Lauren Daigle, “Trust in You”
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