listen to devotional…

Gal 6:2 Bear one another’s burdens, and thereby fulfill the law of Christ.

I was working with a fellow employee today that I have seen over the years in the crew room but have only worked with one time in 5 years. We didn’t know each other very well so as we were going over the necessary paperwork for our duties of the day we were discussing all of the trivial things people usually start out with… How is the weather, looks like the Portland Trail Blazer’s are going to lose another playoff series, and do you want to stop for coffee before we get out to the train?

As we were driving to the train I could tell that my engineer was someone I connected with and since he was wearing a Washington Nationals baseball cap I figured that once we got on the train we would at least be able to talk baseball. After four hours of getting our train built and all of the proper people being contacted we were on our way south.

So here goes, at least 6 hours in a locomotive with someone I hardly know and a lot of time to either sit and stare out the window or strike up conversation. There are many trips where I don’t connect at all with my engineer and those trips are incredibly difficult. This was not one of those trips. Within a couple of short hours we discovered that we have many things in common. Little League baseball, kids doing dumb things that we just go “hello?” about, and wives who had breast cancer the same year going through treatment at the same time in the same hospital.

After our short 7 1/2 hour trip I could see that the conversation was incredibly beneficial to the both of us. This trip was spent talking about a variety of life events and how we feel going through them. It got deep on many occasions and when the trip was over and we were heading to our hotel rooms we both kind of laughed. My engineer commented that after a trip like that, what was left to talk about now. I told him that I was sure there would be far more we will be able to discuss on the return trip home.

Rom 15:1 Now we who are strong ought to bear the weaknesses of those without strength and not just please ourselves.

Sharing good conversation in the right environment with someone you can trust can be quite healing. I could tell from our conversation last night that my engineer just needed to talk and he was able to share all kinds of personal struggles that have obviously been a burden on him for some time. God gives us opportunities to be available to others and it is our responsibility to discern when those times arise. Not only was I blessed by the opportunity to listen to a fellow worker share some of his burdens, but I was able to share a little bit about how God has helped me in my walk through my own struggles.

Look for open doors and listen to those around you who might be dealing with a load that they can’t carry alone. And if you are burdened beyond what you can carry then I encourage you to look to Christ to lighten your load. Bearing one another’s burdens is great when there is someone to share with. But from time to time when there is no one around but you and God, He wants to hear your struggles too. The only reason I was able to encourage and help my fellow worker bear his burdens was because I know that mine are being carried by a God who can handle all of my needs.

Psa 55:22 Cast your burden upon the LORD and He will sustain you; He will never allow the righteous to be shaken.