The Yoke That Gives Us Rest

We’re going to begin with a poem that I’m sure you have either heard or heard of it. It’s Footprints In the Sand by Mary Stevenson

“After the last scene of my life flashed before me,

I looked back at the footprints in the sand….

I noticed that at many times along the path of life,

especially at the very lowest and saddest times,

there was only one set of footprints….

This really troubled me, so I asked the Lord about it….

He whispered, My precious child, I love you and will never leave you

Never, ever, during your trials and testings.

When you saw only one set of footprints,

It was then that I carried you.”

Each time I read this poem, I am encouraged because I know that my Heavenly Father is never far away. He’s always near. Always.

As a child growing up in a little country church in Tennessee, I often heard the older folks talk indirectly about certain verses over and over again because of what they meant to them over a lifetime of living. Turn with me to Matthew 11 and we’re going to read verses 28, 29 and 30.

(28) Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

(29) Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart; and ye shall find rest unto your souls.

(30) For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. (Matthew 11:28-30)

Each time I read this promise, I’m filled with encouragement and reassurance. I want you to notice something. In Jesus uses the word “rest” twice In these three verses. They are the same word in the Greek. After looking at them, I decided to pull up the Merriam-Webster dictionary on my iPhone and two definitions caught my eye.

The first was “peace of mind.”

As our nation and world battle COVID-19, and as we continually hear about the negative news about the infections and the virus-related deaths, our minds need this rest, this peace, this quietness, more than ever. And why is this?

When our minds are inflamed – when they are experiencing an escalation of intense emotions like fear or anger – we cannot hear what 1 Kings 19:12 calls the Spirit’s “still small voice.” All of the “emotional noise” will drown out any chance we have to hear the calming voice of the spirit on the inside of us and the instructions that is waiting for us.

I want peace of mind. What about you? But, I paused when I read the second definition.

The dictionary said a “rest” was “something used for support.” Now let me tell you what my eyes saw when I read this. My eyes read someone used for support. Do you want to hazard a guess as to who that someone is? It’s Jesus!

As I thought about this definition, several examples came to mind.

For example, you have a woman in the hospital who is in a weakened state after a surgery or illness. She will need the assistance of a nurse to get her out of bed to start her rehabilitation. Now you and I know that the nurse doesn’t enter the room and tell the woman to get up, it’s time for rehab. No. She goes over to the woman’s bed, helps her sit up and then helps her get out of the bed. Once she is on her feet, the nurse lets the woman use her as support as they walk down the hallway.

This is what Stevenson is describing in her poem. When some people, including Christians, experience troubling times, they are sometimes so mentally and emotionally drained that just doing routine things like getting out of bed or cooking can be a struggle. Those are the times that our loving Heavenly Father steps in and carries us. Those are the times when He whispers “Peace. Be still.” Now here’s the key: we must hear Him and obey Him.

Another image I see in someone used for support will be very familiar to most of us. When our children were small, wherever they were frightened or hurt themselves, they would run to us and crawl into our laps. We would wrap our arms around them, pull them close and say “Don’t be scared. It’ll be all right.” And they believed us. Now I’m going to say that again. And they believed us!

Ladies and gentlemen, Jesus wants us to know that everything is going to be all right. We are going to come out on the other side of this battle with COVID-19 stronger, and I believe, with a deeper love and appreciation for what Jesus did for us on the cross.

The verse in Matthew 11 the older folks at my childhood church alluded to was verse 28. “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”