Galatians 4:19 My dear children, for whom I am again in the pains of childbirth until Christ is formed in you.
Not all burdens are bad. Birthing a vision, dream or a God-given goal is burdensome. The perfect epitome of delivering a dream is birthing a baby into the world. The new life brings ecstatic excitement but the mother goes through physical changes, erratic emotional turbulence and mood swings while she carries the bundle of joy in her womb. The blessing of the baby starts as a burden but patient endurance brings the blessing to fruition. The allegory best fits into the visions and dreams that we conceive and carry.
In the first trimester, when the embryo is growing in the womb, no one notices the blessing but the mother starts experiencing changes in her body. A God-given vision/ambition/dream planted in our heart brings changes to our cravings, commitments and comrades. Our focus turns towards the fetus. As we feed the fetus, the belly starts growing. Similarly, once our dream takes shape, it starts growing and showing! When the dream is fully grown we are ready to birth the vision. The burden of the blessing is the heaviest just before it is birthed.
God had planted a vision in the Apostle Paul’s heart. “Then the Lord said to me, ‘Go; I will send you far away to the Gentiles.’” (Acts 22:21). He ministered among different cultures, ethnic groups and nationalities. He faced hatred, stoning, beating and persecution. Paul describes his agonizing suffering to preach Christ to the heathens as “pains of childbirth”. A vision that grows becomes heavy, and unless a vision is weighty, it will be blown away like a chaff by the baffling challenges. So, carry your dream like how a mother carries her baby and endure the labour pains to birth the blessing.
Three checks to turn burdens into blessing:
1. Fusion: Godly vision is not a bright idea, it is a God idea. Fusion of God’s thoughts with our aspirations births divine visions. God will confirm His idea through promises, prophecies and prospects. The initial excitement may not last as the vision grows heavier and the opposition grows fiercer. There might be forces that try to abort the growing vision but partnering with Jesus protects the pregnancy. Fusion of God’s ambitions with our aspiration births divine visions.
2. Foundation: The risk of abortion is high in the first trimester. Similarly, the threats of termination of our vision, by discouragement and disparaging comments, in the early stages of our endeavour, is very high. Qualifying to become a professional, acquiring a niche skill or pursuing a ministry calling are burdensome to carry but perseverance will birth a Godly vision. A vision that is firmly planted on the foundation of Christ cannot be uprooted.
- Fruition: Check the motives, purpose and long term and short term goals of the burden that you carry. If the burden is just to earn money, popularity and live merry, it is not worth carrying. Our earthly achievements must have eternal accomplishments. God is only committed to bringing to fruition what He started.
Divine burdens bring eternal blessings.
Romans 5:3-4 We know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.
Prayer: Divine Father, implant your purpose in me. May I conceive, carry and birth Your vision for my life. Amen.
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