Posts Tagged ‘life responsibilities’


Sleepless nights

In Bible Study tonight, it was mentioned about a mother who could not sleep due to worrying about her daughter who is going through something. How many of us had that same issue of not sleeping behind worrying about someone else’s burden, or even your own? He is a piece of scripture that can help you find rest when issues are keeping you up all night.

Matthew 12:28-30 – “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.”

A yoke is heavy wooden harness that fits over the shoulders of an ox or oxen. It is attached to a piece of equipment the oxen are to pull. A person may be carrying heavy burdens of (1) sin, (2) excessive demands of religious leaders (23:4 Acts 15:10), (3) oppression and persecution, or (4) weariness in the search for God.
Jesus frees people from all these burdens. The rest that Jesus promises is love, healing, and peace with God, not the end of all labor. A relationship with God changes meaningless, wearisome toil into spiritual productivity and purpose.

In what sense was Jesus yoke easy? The yoke emphasizes the challenges, work, and difficulties of partnering with Christ in life. Responsibilities weigh us down, even the effort of staying true to God. But Jesus yoke remains easy compared to the crushing alternative.
Jesus doesn’t offer a life of luxurious ease, the yoke is still an oxen’s tool for working hard. But it’s a shared yoke, with weight falling on bigger shoulders than yours. Someone with more pulling power is up front helping. Suddenly you are participating in life’s responsibilities with a great Partner and now that frown can turn into a smile, and that gripe into a song.

So the next time you run into a situation where you cannot find rest at night. Turn to this Scripture and Pray to the Lord Jesus Christ and asked him to take this burden from you so you can rest.