Listen:
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30
Reflect:
In December I wrote this in my journal: I desire to be of value in this world, yet I know that God already values me and that he wants my first desire to be for Him. It should be enough simply to encounter Him and yet I yearn to be of use. “Learn from me,” says Jesus, “For I am gentle and humble in heart.”
I have not yet learned that it is enough to be humble and gentle, under His yoke, taking the burden he gives me. But I am learning.
I have just returned from spending a week in Malawi, checking out some of the projects our church is supporting there. This is my third visit and I signed up reluctantly. The reason being that I feel so out of my depth. The difficulties these dear people face are immense, and I would rather send gifts from a distance. I see what needs to change but don’t have the skills to help. Just before going two things were made clear to me, one through a sermon, the other through a friend. I had the authority of Jesus to go in His name, and, maybe I just needed to be there, and see what God is doing.
I came back rejoicing. My yoke was ‘to be there.’ By taking that journey and traveling along terrible dirt roads to poor villages, we were saying to the people we met, “You matter, you have value.” Our small support is a huge encouragement to those ‘on the ground’ who are seeking to love and serve and grow His kingdom.
Prayer of Response:
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.”
Hear Jesus speaking those words to you right now. Take a few moments to rest.
“Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart,” Be aware of his gentleness towards you, his understanding. Talk to Him about the tasks ahead of you.
“and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Are you facing something very hard? Are you taking on more than He is asking you to? Ask Jesus to show you just how much you should take on and for the joy that brings strength and makes burdens light.
—Submitted by Elaine Davis
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