It's Okay To Be Dependent On God
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” - Matthew 11:28-30
I was going through some of my old journals and writings today looking for ideas of what to write this devotion about, and I came across an entry that made me smile and convicted me all at the same time.
It was something I wrote on a Thursday morning, after having gone to youth group to hear my then-boyfriend (now husband) preach. There was one particular statement he had made during his message that stuck out to me that night. And now, two years later, it’s still hitting me just as hard.
The statement Kevin made was this:
It’s okay to be dependent on God.
It was such a simple sentence, but it carries a lot of weight all at the same time. You see, I love the feeling of independence. I love being self-sufficient. And I love knowing that I can take care of myself and figure things out for myself.
But what I’m realizing as I’m meditating on that statement Kevin made is that God never tells us that we have to be independent. He never commands us to figure things out on our own or to do everything in our own strength. And He definitely never says that He expects us not to need Him.
In fact, one of the lessons that’s on repeat throughout Scripture is that we should always be dependent on God. We should always need Him. And we should always hand our burdens, our worries, our cares, our goals, and our dreams to Him rather than continuing to pile them on our own shoulders.
So, if you’re like me and you pride yourself on being independent and self-sufficient, I want to remind you that it’s okay to be dependent on God. In fact, your life is going to be a whole lot better if you live in a state of dependency on Him. You’re going to feel lighter. You’re going to have more peace. And you’re going to grow in your trust and faith in your Heavenly Father as you learn that He was designed to carry things you were never meant to carry on your own.