There are seasons when you genuinely do not know what comes next.
You know something needs to change. You have responsibilities that cannot simply be abandoned. You want to make wise decisions for your family. You want to follow God rather than fear. And somewhere in the middle of all of that, you start carrying a weight you were never meant to carry.
Scripture gives us a different way.
“Give your burdens to the LORD, and he will take care of you.”
— Psalm 55:22, NLT, excerpt
That doesn’t mean we stop working.
It means we learn the difference between responsibility and burden.
Start With the Plank
Jesus asks a difficult question in Matthew 7:
“Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye?”
— Matthew 7:3–5, NIV, quoting verse 3
It is easy to identify everything wrong around us.
- The difficult situation.
- The unfair person.
- The disappointing circumstances.
- The opportunity we haven’t received.
- The person who needs to change.
Sometimes those things really are problems.
But Jesus turns our attention inward first.
Before asking God to change everything around me, perhaps I need to ask:
Father, is there something in me that You are trying to change?
Maybe it’s pride. Maybe resentment. Maybe fear. Maybe impatience.
Maybe the need to control an outcome because trusting God feels too uncertain.
Removing the plank isn’t about condemning ourselves. Jesus says to remove it so that we can see clearly.
Clear vision matters when you’re trying to decide what comes next.
Praise Before the Circumstances Change
Psalm 43 gives us another picture.
The psalmist is discouraged enough to speak directly to his own soul:
“Why are you cast down, O my soul? … Hope in God; for I shall yet praise Him.”
— Psalm 43:5, NKJV, excerpt
Notice that the circumstances haven’t necessarily changed.
He turns toward hope and anticipates praising God again before he knows how the story ends. That gives us a way to practice praise while we wait.
There is something powerful about that.
Praise isn’t pretending something painful is good.
Praise is remembering God is good while something is painful.
Those are very different things.
We can acknowledge disappointment, uncertainty, exhaustion, and frustration without allowing any of them to become our definition of God.
God Is the Source
Abraham gives us another lesson.
God called him, then named Abram, away from what was familiar and promised:
“I will bless you … and you will be a blessing.”
— Genesis 12:1–2, NIV, excerpt from verse 2
This was a particular covenant promise to Abram, not a guarantee that every opportunity will succeed for us.
Later, when Abraham and Lot needed to separate, Abraham allowed Lot to choose the land he wanted (Genesis 13:5–18).
Abraham’s future ultimately wasn’t secured by getting the best-looking piece of ground.
His confidence was in God.
That’s worth remembering.
A job isn’t your source. A business isn’t your source. A customer isn’t your source. A paycheck isn’t your source. A new opportunity isn’t your source.
These things can certainly become channels of provision, and we should steward them responsibly.
But they make terrible gods.
When we confuse the channel with the Source, fear takes over.
We cling to something God may be asking us to release, or desperately chase something He hasn’t asked us to pursue.
When God remains the Source, we can hold the channels with open hands.
Let Christ Form Something New
There is another trap we can fall into during difficult seasons.
We decide we’re going to fix ourselves.
Try harder. Become stronger. Stop being afraid. Have more faith. Get everything together.
But the Christian life isn’t merely self-improvement with Bible verses attached.
Paul wrote of Christ being formed in believers (Galatians 4:19).
The work of God goes deeper than behavior modification. Through Christ and the Holy Spirit, God is changing who we are becoming.
So perhaps the prayer shouldn’t only be:
“God, change my circumstances.”
It can also become:
“Father, form Christ in me through these circumstances.”
Give me wisdom. Expose my pride. Strengthen my courage. Teach me patience. Make me more loving.
Help me become trustworthy with whatever comes next.
Now the difficult season isn’t meaningless.
Something is being forged.
Carry Your Responsibility. Give God the Weight.
This may be the distinction many of us need.
God hasn’t called us to passivity.
There are things we are responsible for:
- Work faithfully.
- Provide for our families.
- Love our wives.
- Raise our children.
- Keep our commitments.
- Learn.
- Prepare.
- Serve people well.
- Make wise decisions.
- Take the next step when it becomes clear.
Those things belong in our hands.
But then there is another category:
- Guaranteeing the outcome.
- Knowing exactly how everything will work.
- Making sure nothing goes wrong.
- Controlling what other people do.
- Predicting what next year looks like.
- Carrying tomorrow’s problems today.
Those burdens don’t belong to us.
That’s where Psalm 55 becomes intensely practical:
Give the burden to God.
God’s sustaining care is not a promise that nothing difficult will happen or that the outcome will follow our preferred plan.
Maybe surrender sounds something like this.
Closing Prayer
Father, show me what is mine to carry today, and help me give You everything that isn’t.
Show me the plank in my own eye so I can see clearly. When my soul becomes discouraged, teach me to praise You before my circumstances change.
Keep me from confusing Your provision with You, the Provider. Form Christ in me instead of merely giving me an easier life.
Give me wisdom to work, courage to move when it is time, and patience when it isn’t.
I will carry the responsibilities You have given me. I give You the weight of the outcome.
In Jesus’ name, amen.
You don’t have to solve your entire life today.
Sometimes faithfulness is much smaller than that.
See clearly.
Do today’s work.
Love the people God has placed in front of you.
Take the next faithful step.
Give God the weight.
That is enough for today.
Built by Grace. Forged by the Father.