He said what?! I never heard Jesus say that
Pause with me for a moment and create an image of you and Jesus sitting on a park bench or your relaxing at your favorite coffee shop.
Now He speaks these words right to you.
Hello my friend,
“Come to me, you are wearyand 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.”
What comforting words from Matthew 11:28-30 (NIV)
You may have heard, read or had someone share this verse with you as encouragement when the burden is too hard. The hope is to gain strength by remembering the last verse when Jesus said, "my burden is light."
I would like to share with you some things about this entire passage that recently became clear to me that we can miss if we only focus on the last sentence.
In verse 29, Jesus tellsus to first learn from him.
"Take my yoke and LEARN from me."
I wonder how many times I have made the burden heavy because I am trying to do it the way I want to instead of learning how He would have me do it. Honestly, I think there have been times when I was not interested in learning His ways because I liked my way of doing things.
As we continue to read, we learn about His ways. He is gentle, which is defined in the Webster dictionary as kind with a quiet manner. He is humble, not arrogant or assertive, but submitting.
Maybe if I quit struggling and put my energy toward learning to be gentle and humble with complete submission, some of my burden to control and do it my own way would be lifted.
Today, I encourage you to slow down when the burden seems too hard. The Lord promises rest when we walk and learn from Him.
What might you need to submit and learn from Him, so that you may find rest and His purpose for you today?
