Weariness

"Are you OK?" my friend Tonya asked me on Saturday. "You look like you have a lot on your mind.”

Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened.

I didn’t feel like I had a lot on my mind, but I guessed it was the look of having been running around for six days straight without much of a break. I’d worked hard the previous week to meet deadlines. Lunch breaks were used to run errands. And evenings had been filled with too much to do and too little time.

Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened.

Along with a packed schedule, I’d managed to have an intense e-mail conversation with a friend — arguing and defending Christianity. As I settled into my seat at church Saturday night, my mind was weary — the feeling of having produced much effort with little viable return.

Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened.

My pastor, Jonathan, preached on Matthew 11:28-30:

”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.”

He asked the question: “Is His yoke really easy, or was He just saying that?”

Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened.

Great question. I’ve been taught to be realistic when it comes to faith in Christ. The Christian life is no piece of cake, after all. Take up your cross and follow Him. That doesn’t sound easy or restful. But it makes sense walking with Jesus should be easy. After all, He who holds all power helps carry the yoke.

Jonathan went on to talk about four important aspects of faith: pursuing God, serving others, building community with believers and leaving a legacy of faith. He pointed out that when we only focus on one or two of these areas, our faith becomes unstable, like a four-legged stool with missing legs. This kind of faith requires more effort because we’re forced to keep the stool standing in our own power.

Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened.

I’ve learned that I have a tendency to make my faith intellectual. I can quickly become obsessed with apologetics, historical evidence and intellectual arguments. But when I look back on my faith journey, the most powerful moments of walking with Jesus have come while serving the least of these or being impacted by other believers. While knowing God’s Word is important, it is not most important.

Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened.

Most important is walking side by side with Jesus in humility, service, community and love, not pulling against the yoke, but letting it pull me. Only then will I experience what He promises.

I will give you rest.