The Boulder Prayer

“Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart; and you will find rest for yourselves. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30

We live in a culture where more is better, where busy is a badge of honor and having a lot to do signifies that we’re needed and important. We’ve been told since our earliest years that anything worth doing is worth doing right – and probably best if we do it ourselves. This self-reliance is dangerous, not only because it’s completely impossible but also because it turns us away from the providence of God.

I’ll be the first to admit that I often get swept up in this line of thinking. I’m a doer. I love being busy, I love working, and I absolutely love having a full plate. I freely admit that I sometimes fall into the lie of believing my efforts work faster than my prayers. If I want something, I’ve got to go after it myself – right?

The most detrimental part about this line of thinking is that it removes any need or desire for God.

If I can figure it out myself, what is left for God to provide?

Ultimately, I end up lugging around a backpack filled with burdens, so heavy it feels like there are stacks of boulders pulling on my shoulders. Instead of feeling empowered and accomplished, I’m left sluggish, exhausted, and overwhelmed. But the Lord says, “my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” And so, after days or weeks or months of running, I come back to Him.

A few years ago, while contemplating an especially heavy backpack, the Lord brought me into what I now call “The Boulder Prayer.” It’s a beautiful way to enter into imaginative, meditative prayer with Jesus and give Him everything. 

He does not give us more than we can carry – but the caveat is that we cannot carry anything alone.

Here’s how it works:

Find a quiet place and enter into prayer. Talk to Jesus – open your heart. Tell Him that you love Him and tell Him that you are feeling weighed down. Then, reach into your backpack and pull out the first “boulder.” It could be 10 tons or 10 pounds. It could be a mountain or a pebble. 

Then, look at Jesus and say “Jesus, I offer you this boulder of ______. I’m carrying it around and it’s holding me down. You promise that your burden is easy, and your yoke is light. I leave this boulder at your feet and I surrender it to You. I trust in You.”

Once you release the boulder at the feet of Jesus, reach into your backpack for the next boulder. Do this again and again until you feel the weight of the backpack lighten and fade away. It might take time to feel the release. Sit in these moments of surrender and listen to what Jesus is saying. Is He thanking you for sharing the boulders with Him? Is He consoling you? Is He offering you hope, or peace, or love, or joy? Take your time in this exercise.

Sometimes, when I feel like I’ve already given Jesus all of my boulders, I sit there with Him and feel something else nudging into my back. In these moments, I look to Him and say “Jesus, what’s in my backpack that I forgot about? What’s the extra boulder that I don’t see?” In His love, He’ll usually reveal it to me. Many times, it’s something I didn’t even know that I was holding onto. It’s a grace to release these hidden boulders – almost more joy-filled than releasing the things that I had at the top of my mind. He knows us better than we know ourselves.

The heart of this prayer is recognizing that the source of many of our boulders is self- reliance. We tend to carry so much on ourselves, when Jesus is standing right there, begging us to share our whole selves with Him. How can you release your boulders today? How can you give Him everything? He is waiting for you; He is thirsting for you. He wants your yoke to be easy, and your burden light. Allow Him to grant you that grace.

Let’s pray:

Lord, help me to reveal my boulders to You. You already know them but allow me the grace to pause in the midst of my busy life and hand them over to you, completely, in surrender, trusting that You will always take care of me. You know me and you know what I need better than I do. Jesus, I trust in you.

Amen

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