Good morning,
There is a wonderful song that includes the words “Jesus, I am resting, resting in the joy of what thou art. I am finding out the greatness of thy loving heart.” The words of this song are actually a response to the invitation that Jesus gave to his weary followers long ago. Jesus was reaching out to his followers with an invitation that was designed to take the heavy load of fear and frustration from their minds, bent under the load of the cares of everyday living. It’s easy for us to forget that when we turn to Jesus for relief from the seemingly negative challenges of life, that our Savior will be there to make sure that the tension we feel will lead us to freedom and joy, not defeat and disaster. Jesus is always with us as we travel through the spiritual battles and the physical challenges that are necessary for our spiritual growth. These burdens are custom designed to show us that what our Enemy paints in black is really the Lord about to show us in the light of his love, as the best possible course of our lives. Our Savior encourages us to welcome the load of challenges that he has designed, in order to help us learn that our Father’s daily plan is not only workable but wonderful.
What does it mean that Jesus is humble and gentle at heart? I think that Jesus is telling us that he is willing to lead us through all the stages of struggle and growth because he knows that our faith in the face of our fears will lead us to a growing trust in our Eternal Lover’s lesson plan. Jesus had a heart that is controlled by his perfect love, so that he is willing to go through all the ups and downs that follow our struggle to move from head faith to a commitment to actually obey his will instead of our own. God wants us to be his children at rest in our Savior’s plans rather than fussing about the details of our own. There is so much joy in discovering that we never go through willing obedience on our own. The challenges that come with obedience fade into gratitude that the Holy Spirit is with us energizing our lives by his strength. Our obedience to the light that he gives us today leads us to our understanding of how right and light our life will be if we just keep following him.
Matthew 11:28 Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.
Roy Wisner
