The Burden of Provision

[corinthpastorbob]

As a spiritual caregiver, I sometimes tire of the one-way stream of provision. It is one of the “burdens of leadership� that Wayne Goodwin, a mentor, spoke of several years ago. Leadership certainly has its rewards, but its burdens can be fully known only to other leaders. The burden of responsibility for provision – whether that’s material provision provided by a parent, emotional provision offered by a care giver, intellectual provision given by a teacher, or spiritual provision dispensed by a pastor (and I am all of those at various times) – is constant. Being the provider is and can be a reward in itself, but if I fail to name and understand the burden of provision, its reality may blind side me, and perhaps even send me into an involuntary wilderness of self-pity.
The resource I need to store up for sustenance in that wilderness is what Tim Laniak describes – the awareness and reminder that I do have One who “comforts me in all my troubles so that I can comfort others.� I have to notice, remember, and even record or preserve the ways he has provided for me – financially, emotionally, intellectually, spiritually.
Some years back a friend gave me a box to keep encouraging letters and notes. Whenever someone writes a card or sends an e-mail thanking me for being their provider, I keep it in (or near) that box. Those messages are part of God’s provision for the “burden of provision� – tangible tokens of blessing and encouragement. The funny thing is, I hardly ever look at the notes again. But knowing they are there reminds me not only that I’m making a difference in the lives of others – but that the Lord is the Source of my provision channeled through others.