Your Cumbrance, Burden and Strife

It’s the burden any man of God must bear

Deuteronomy 1:12 (KJV)
How can I myself alone bear your cumbrance, and your burden, and your strife?

The book of Deuteronomy is a rehearsal of their last forty years. It was for the benefit of a new generation who had grown up in the wilderness wandering. They were not the ones who had committed the offense of unbelief that resulted in those forty years, but they had paid the consequences. It was now their turn. Would they trust God or turn in unbelief?

The first chapter is a fast outline of the whole forty years cast in the shadow of the burden Moses had carried. It’s the burden any man of God must bear. He does not carry it alone. He cannot. But he does bear it. Moses said it was the burden of their, cumbrance, burden, and strife.

• He judged the hard cases
• He dealt with their hesitations
• He encouraged them to trust God and move forward

And when they refused

• He stayed with them, supporting them as they endured their judgment

I believe this is an accurate description of the man in the ministry. There are burdens to bear, and they may not be the ones we would have chosen to carry.

God, help us to remain by our charge regardless.

To my readers:
Thank you! It is a great joy to me to know you read the thoughts and lessons God has given me in His word. I would love to hear from you. Please feel free to leave comments.