Weary? Take On His Yoke

Are you weary and disillusioned about a promise God made to you?  Are you burdened for a loved one or a situation beyond your control? Often we begin to lose hope, and holding onto your promise can be difficult. Time continues to go by with little or no confirmation of what you were sure of in your spirit.  Those are the days when you cry out to God and ask Him for more grace and more faith.  His Word breathes life back into us as He gently lifts our head. 

If you are tired and worn out, submit to Jesus and get under His Yoke of direction.  Let Him properly place it on you so that you may come along side Him in your life’s journey.  Ready yourself for a new path forward that is free from struggle and missteps.  Have a mindset of being equally yoked.

So, what exactly is a yoke and how does it pertain to us in our relationship with Jesus? 

A yoke, also known as an oxbow, is a bar of wood so constructed as to unite two animals, usually oxen, enabling them to work in the fields together – side by side.  It is often custom fitted for comfort.

In the New Testament, the Apostle Paul often said he was a bondservant to the Lord Jesus, implying he was yoked to Him in service.  Paul also admonishes believers not to be yoked with unbelievers in marriage– as it is a picture of the spiritual struggle that will ensue.  Two cannot walk as one when they are spiritually mismatched.

A yoke was also used figuratively in the sense of servitude or bondage.  After He reproached the cities in which He was rejected, Jesus extended an invitation to any and all who would respond, saying, “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden [weary], and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For, My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” (Matthew 11:28-30)

There are four (4) action verbs in Matthew 11:28-30 - come, take, learn, and find. 

Come implies an invitation – a bidding to move away from your previous position.

Take implies a voluntary decision to receive something

Learn implies the beginning of a new mindset or way of doing things.

Find implies the discovery of something unknown or previously unrecognized

The Pharisees had put unnecessary burdens on men that were “impossible” to bear.  The people were looking for relief from the oppression they were under from trying to keep the Law.  A feeling of weariness and exhaustion begins to creep in when you are under pressure to perform.  I John 5:3 says “…His commandments are not burdensome.”  Being yoked to our Lord in submission relieves the burden of having to choose which path to follow.  His yoke is “easy” because He and the Father are One.  He invites us to take up His yoke and join Him in His divine purpose, which in turn relieves our striving and struggle. Learning from the Master prepares us to come along side Him and work in perfect unison.  We no longer stumble under a load that is unbearable.

In the classic book The Pilgrim’s Progress, John Bunyan says this in his first chapter: “So I saw in my dream, that just as Christian came up with the Cross, his burden loosed from off his shoulders, and fell from off his back… Then was Christian glad and lightsome…”  When we let go of our burdens and take up Christ’s yoke, it is easier and not cumbersome. It gives us a sigh of relief and a soulful rest like none other.  Christ’s example of endurance in the face of hostility from a lost world is our hope.  Hebrews 12:3 declares, “For consider Him who endured such hostility from sinners against Himself, lest you become weary and discouraged in your souls.”

In his commentary, Matthew Henry states in regards to taking up your yoke: “The rest He promises is a release from the drudgery of sin, not from the service of God. To call those who are weary and heavy laden, to take a yoke upon them, looks like adding affliction to the afflicted; but the pertinence of it lies in the words of Jesus to take up His yoke, which is easy.”

Yoke yourself to Christ and let Him lead you in the paths of righteousness and peaceful submission.  He is gentle and loving and trustworthy.  Our souls will prosper when we are conformed to His perfect will.

The following poem was written by me in April of 1998 during an intense time of prayer and intercession. I believe its prophetic message was given to me as an encouragement during the wait.  Be blessed…     

                                                

  Your Husband - My gift to you

Daughter of Mine, come close

and listen to Me.

I chose you first.

My strength is made perfect in your weakness.

Your husband is my workmanship.

I have ordained this marriage.

It is a divine joining

- a partnership

“till death do you part.”

My grace is sufficient for you.

Do not take offense.

His actions are not governed by My spirit.

He does not yet know Me as you do.

You are the apple of My eye;

it is my good pleasure

to give you the desires of your heart.

That would be your husband - would it not?

Your obedience to Me and your humbleness

in the face of heartbreak are your sacrificial

offering to Me - one in which I treasure.

I am your husband now, for awhile.  Let me comfort and love you.

Daughter, take heart.  You are not forgotten.

Can you see him?  I am creating in him a new man;

in My likeness.  Be patient…  Trust Me…  Wait.

“For the unbelieving husband is sanctified by the wife…”“For how do you know, O wife, whether you will save your husband?” (I Corinthians 7: 14, 16)

Deborah is the author of a Christian non-fiction book titled “Mission Possible”.  It is written for women who love the Lord Jesus, but their spouse doesn’t share their passion.  It will encourage and challenge the reader to embrace God’s promises for their spouse and future together. 

http://www.Godmissionpossible.com

Weary? Take On His Yoke

When The Going Gets Tough - Eat Angel Food Cake And Rest!

When was the last time you were ready to scream, “I can’t take it anymore!”?  You’ve come to the end of your rope and you can’t even hang onto the threads! If one more person tugs at you and needs a moment of your time, you’re going to walk right out of that door and not come back!

Okay… well, maybe it’s not that bad – but it’s getting there! We’ve all had times when we’ve decided we just can’t handle one more thing on our plate, or one more demand on us. There comes a time when we have to stop and evaluate our very existence! Why are we here? We don’t really need to be so melodramatic, we just have to put it all in perspective.

We are often the most venerable when we’re physically, emotionally, and mentally exhausted.  You may be in a high risk group such as a new mom, a student, a high-level career professional, a nurse, a public servant, or a retailer. The list is endless, but in reality – we’re all “at risk” for being worn out at some time or another.

Often, during our time of stress, we are also a target for Satan’s temptations and snares. He loves to attack the weak, the sick and the defenseless. As a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour, our adversary preys on those who are exhausted and venerable. Just as a lion in the wild isolates his victim, so does the enemy of our souls. We need to be vigilant and resist him, steadfast in the faith (I Peter 5:8-9).

In the Gospels, Jesus was tempted by Satan when He was hungry, tired and isolated. He had human limitations even though He was the incarnate God. He rebuked Satan by quoting Scripture. We can do the same by exclaiming, “It is written…”  Using our sword of the Sprit effectively is our greatest weapon against the father of lies.

One of the best examples in the Bible of spiritual and emotional exhaustion is the prophet Elijah. 

In I Kings chapters 17 thru 19, we see Elijah about to have a monumental showdown on Mount Carmel with over eight hundred false prophets of Baal and Asherah that served at thte pleasure of King Ahab's evil wife, Queen Jezebel.

Elijah set up an elaborate altar surrounded by a trench, offered a sacrifice on it, but put no fire under it, saying, “Then you call on the name of your gods, and I will call on the name of the Lord, and the God who answer by fire, He is God.” After hours of coaxing and mocking them, at the time of the evening sacrifice, Elijah prayed aloud for God to vindicate him. Then the fire of the Lord fell and consumed the burnt sacrifice including the wood, stones, and water. The people acknowledged the Lord God and they seized and executed the false prophets. That did it! Jezebel took it personally and wanted her revenge against Elijah.

When the going gets tough –run for your life!  Elijah must have forgotten all about the miraculous success on Mt. Carmel. How many times do we forget what the Lord has done for us?  Chapter 19 verse 4 tells us he went a day’s journey into the wilderness, and sat down under a broom tree. There he prayed that he might die, and said, “It is enough! Now, Lord, take my life, for I am no better than my fathers!” Verse 5 says that as he was sleeping, an angel touched him and told him to “Arise and eat.” By his head was a cake baked on coals, and a jar of water. The Scripture says that he ate and drank, and lay down again.

This scenario repeated itself for a second time, and we are told he went in the strength of that food for forty days and forty nights as far as Mt. Horeb. It was here in a crag on Mt. Horeb that God spoke to Elijah in a still small voice. Elijah had attended his own pity party, and God in His mercy came to his rescue. In the end God restored Elijah to his rightful place as prophet, directed him to anoint Elisha to take his place, and reinforced his fortitude by reminding him that there were still seven thousand in Israel who had not bowed down to Baal.

God is still in the business of comforting his saints.  He sends us provisions when we are weary. Often all that is needed to help us through the crisis is a good hot meal, and a good night’s sleep. As the manna rained down from heaven, so shall your sustenance be. Psalm 78:23-25 tells us, “Yet He [God] had commanded the clouds above, and opened the doors of heaven, had rained down manna on them to eat, and given them of the bread of heaven. Men ate angels’ food; He sent them food to the full.”  Elijah had his own brand of angel food cake and rest.

The Bread of Life Himself will fill your hunger, 

and His Living Water will quench your thirst 

(John 6:22; John 7:37-38).

Resting in the Lord gives you a renewed vigor and stamina. Meditate on His Goodness. Read Psalm 23 and picture yourself in a lush, green pasture, following your Shepherd as He makes His way to a fresh, cool brook. Psalm 37:3 says, “Trust in the Lord, and do good; Dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness." Verse 7 says, “Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him…”  In Matthew 11:28-29 Jesus invites us to “Come, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.”

It is said that Susannah Wesley, the mother of John and Charles Wesley, often pulled her outer skirt over her head to find peace and a stillness when her offspring were little. As a mother of over a dozen children, she resorted to whatever means was necessary to rest in the Lord, even if it was for but a moment.



Deborah is the author of a Christian non-fiction book titled “Mission Possible”. It is written for women who love the Lord Jesus, but their spouse doesn’t share their passion. It will encourage and challenge the reader to embrace God’s promises for their spouse and future together.

http://www.Godmissionpossible.com 

When The Going Gets Tough - Eat Angel Food Cake And Rest!