I Need HopeSample

**Notice: This content includes sensitive themes that some readers may find difficult: [abortion]. Please take care as you read.

Day 4 – "This Burden Is Crushing Me, and I Don’t Know How to Put It Down"

Have you been bearing a burden for too long? Maybe it’s been a year, ten years, or even more than twenty—and it’s eating you alive.

Jesus never intended for you to carry any burden but His own. In Matthew, He says, "Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light" (Matthew 11:28-30 ESV).

Maybe you feel cursed to carry the weight of your past mistakes—because you chose to sin. Now, you strap yourself down with shame and regret, thinking you’re doing justice to yourself. Maybe you believe that if God sees how you're punishing yourself, He might have mercy on you if He is feeling gracious enough.

But, friend, the scales of justice in Heaven are very different from the ones we use on earth.

We often believe that when we sin, we must punish ourselves to be forgiven. But in reality, the wrath of God was already satisfied on the cross of Jesus Christ. When we try to earn forgiveness through self-punishment or believe that God is waiting to punish us, we aren’t getting closer to freedom; we’re suffocating ourselves deeper into shame and heaviness.

We tie a heavy weight around our necks and imagine God looking down at us, saying, “Yes, that’s right, keep feeling guilty and beating yourself up until I’m satisfied.”

But that is not the heart of God. That lie is a strategy of the enemy to keep you bound, broken, and stuck in shame, far from the freedom Jesus died to give you.

Can we offer you hope today?

God is not mad at you. He’s not waiting to strike you down with a lightning bolt. He’s running toward you, just like the father in the story of the Prodigal Son in Luke 15.

He’s ready to cover you with His love, place a robe on your shoulders, shoes on your feet, and a ring on your finger. He’s ready to restore you to your rightful place—as His son or daughter.

Laura carried a heavy burden for years until one day she shared her story with another believer and began to seek true healing and freedom. When she was younger, Laura had an abortion. For years, she wrestled with anxiety, fear, and deep shame. That "secret sin" was burying her alive.

But something changed when she confessed this to a follower of Jesus and realized she could be forgiven and grieve the child that could have been. She was met with the tender love of Jesus and began her healing journey.

God isn't looking at you with self-righteous anger. He doesn’t cast you away. His arms come around you, just like the Prodigal Son’s father, to embrace you and, as Scripture says, to “run and embrace him and kiss him” (Luke 15:20 ESV).

Maybe you feel unworthy like the Prodigal Son. We understand. But here’s the beautiful truth: your unworthiness makes you the perfect candidate for grace.

Crazy, right?

Remember, Heaven’s justice scales aren’t like the world's. Here, when someone does wrong, we throw shame. Jesus? He showers mercy. And that mercy is new every single morning: “The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness” (Lamentations 3:22-23 ESV).

I pray that, just like Laura, the hope of Jesus begins to lift you out of shame and regret. I mentioned at the beginning of this study to let hope be oxygen for your soul. Breathe it in and don't let shame bury you any longer.

Practical Steps:

1. Admit you need Jesus.
   He already knows—but freedom begins when you confess it out loud.
2. Find a trusted Christian friend.
   Someone who will pray with you, walk with you, and remind you of the truth when you forget it.
3. Forgive, if needed.
   Is there someone you need to forgive so your heart can start to heal? Forgive them. And if the pain resurfaces, forgive again and again—just like Christ forgives us.
4. Forgive yourself.
   You were never meant to live chained to regret. Go to the mirror and forgive the person staring back at you. Let grace be louder than guilt. It's time.