God's Ponzi scheme

BOX SCORE
Element	Current	Std. Range	Trend
Hemoglobin	10.7	13-17	-
Platelets	50	140-375	v
ANC	2290	1800-8300	v

I am so grateful to dozens of people around the world who offer prayers on behalf of me and Jill in our current circumstances. I have heard over the years about people who have literally felt the uplifting of their spirits and even protection from physical harm, only to learn later that at those very moments, someone had been praying specific prayers for them. While I was able to conceptualize this kind of thing, because I truly believe God's promises, it wasn't until I found myself battling leukemia that I realized it was happening to me. There can be no doubt in my mind that God cares about His children, that He hears our prayers and that "The prayer of a righteous person has great effectiveness." (James 5:16b)

Sometimes the awesomeness of God overwhelms me. I pray regularly for lots of friends and family. Today, for the second time this week, God put one of those friends on my heart with what felt like some urgency. After my prayer time, I contacted my friend to ask if things were OK and whether there is anything special going on that needs prayer. I learned that his mother-in-law had recently passed away, unexpectedly leaving his wife devastated. In addition, their adopted son, who was a drug baby and has had lots of behavioral problems, is now in a kind of limbo. He has been in residential treatment but now has finished that program and needs to find a place to live where he is away from his siblings. My friend told me they have a court appearance scheduled for today and that he really appreciated my offer to pray for the family. 

While I was beginning to write this post, another friend called and asked if he could come by for a visit. It turns out he wanted to confer about another, mutual acquaintance who is really struggling with family issues. We had a chance to discuss possible ways we may be able to help him through this time of intense stress. 

One of the things that has happened to me during my illness is that I have become much more discerning when God speaks to my heart about people who are hurting.  He has given me an extra measure of compassion to share with others. Now, some might think this would be an extra burden to carry as I deal with my own challenges, but it turns out to be one of those situations where sharing other people's burdens actually lightens my own load.

Galatians 6:2-5 reads, "Carry one another’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ. ³ For if anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he deceives himself. ⁴ Let each one examine his own work. Then he can take pride in himself and not compare himself with someone else. ⁵ For each one will carry his own load."

This passage seems to contain a contradiction: "Carry one another’s burdens," and "...each one will carry his own load." Here is how Bible commentator David Guzik explains this apparent conundrum.

"i. There is no contradiction between bear one another’s burdens (Galatians 6:2) and each one shall bear his own load (Galatians 6:5). In Galatians 6:5, Paul spoke of our final accountability before God. In Galatians 6:2, he spoke of our need to care for others in the body of Christ.

ii. There is also a difference in the wording Paul uses. The word for load in Galatians 6:5 was a common term for a man’s backpack. The word for burdens in Galatians 6:2 was a different word meaning “heavy burdens” — those that are more than a man should carry. In the end, we are all responsible for our own work, but we can help bear the burdens of others. (Emphasis added) 

Somehow, God allows us to help another person carry his burden, and in so doing He makes our own burden seem a little lighter, for "in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ." And what is the Law of Christ? Love God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. And we do that by loving our neighbor as we love ourselves. 

I am grateful that God gives us this amazing ability to carry our own burden of responsibility to our neighbors by giving us extra strength to help our neighbor carry a load that is just too much for him. When people pray for me and for Jill as we walk through the challenges of dealing with cancer, they lift some of the burden that occasionally is just too much to bear. In so doing, they allow us to have enough strength to carry our burden of responsibility to others who need help with their own overwhelming loads. 

God gave me a gift this week in letting me know that I needed to contact my friend who has a heavy load to carry. Not only can I help my friend through prayer, but my spirit is uplifted in doing so, because I am fulfilling the law of Christ. 

I don't know, why, but this almost seems like a Ponzi scheme. If I help someone else carry his burden, I get paid back with interest in the form of my own burden becoming lighter. And in the kingdom of God, the more people who get involved, the lighter everyone's burden becomes. It is as if one person's investment is used to pay another person interest. This scheme can only work in the kingdom of God because we are fulfilling the law of Christ. Not only that, but, unlike human Ponzi schemers, who eventually run out of other people's money, God possesses an infinite amount of love for us to share and pay dividends to others. And His law is different from our earthly laws. 

Prayer truly is a gift that keeps on giving.