“Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.” Matthew 11:28-30 (TM)
How often have you lifted something and at first you think you are doing ok but then as you have to hold it for longer and longer, it suddenly seems to get heavier and heavier until finally you get to the point where you have to quickly set it down before you end up dropping it?
One of the things that I’ve observed about people is the amount of mental and emotional baggage they carry round with them. It’s like they have a backpack and each time they encounter something in life, it’s like they pick up a weight and throw it into their backpack. Over time, for many people, the weight of all this stuff gets too much to bear and the cracks start to show in their health or their relationships.
Jesus did not come to add to people’s troubles, to condemn them or insist they follow a specific set of difficult rules as the Pharisees did. That would just be like adding weight to the backpack, No, He came to take their burdens from them, to open their eyes to the Truth, to set them free.
Give thanks to God today that Jesus has set you free, that you no longer have to worry or feel like you are carrying the weight of the world on your shoulders. Jesus, the great burden bearer, says to you today, ‘find rest in me’.