Charles Stanley (March 19, 2025) Daily Devotional: The Price of Prayerlessness.
God invites you to bring your burdens to Him every day.
Isaiah 40:28-31 - Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth Does not become weary or tired. His understanding is inscrutable. He gives strength to the weary, And to him who lacks might He increases power. Though youths grow weary and tired, And vigorous young men stumble badly, Yet those who wait for the LORD Will gain new strength; They will mount up with wings like eagles, They will run and not get tired, They will walk and not become weary.
God wants us to talk with Him, and Matthew 7:7-8 is an invitation to speak with Him about anything. Jesus said if we have a need, we’re to ask; if we seek answers, we’ll find them; if we want opportunities to open up, He will respond when we knock. Even so, many of us don’t spend as much time in prayer as we should.
Forsaking prayer can be costly. If we don’t spend time with the Lord, we might find ourselves on a slippery slope, sliding through weariness, discouragement, and doubt. Today let’s look at the first of these. Tomorrow we can examine the other two.
Certain situations take an emotional, physical, and/or spiritual toll—we call these burdens. They can wear us out if we attempt to endure them alone. But God doesn’t intend for that weight to fall on our shoulders. In fact, the Bible tells us to cast those loads on the Lord, who sustains us and “daily bears our burden” (Psalm 55:22 - Cast your burden upon the LORD and He will sustain you; He will never allow the righteous to be shaken.; Psalm 68:19 - Blessed be the Lord, who daily bears our burden, The God who is our salvation. Selah).
Hauling all our worries and cares around is exhausting because we are not built for such loads. In God’s design, His strength fills the believer to capacity. Picture Jesus’ shoulders just above your own—with Him bearing your problems. The burden may not disappear, but it feels blessedly lighter when you hand it over to the Lord.
