Let us Pray – O God, light of the minds that know you, life of the souls that love you, and strength of the thoughts that seek you – bless the words that I will read and the meditations of my heart. I ask this in Jesus’ name. Amen
I would like to begin today with a poem that I’m sure you will have heard or heard of it. It’s titled 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.
Let us read again verses 28, 29 and 30 from today’s Gospel reading
(28) Come close to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.
(29) 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. (30) For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.
Each time I read this promise from Jesus, I’m filled with encouragement and reassurance. I would like to focus on a few things from these 3 verses; Weary and being burdened, Rest and Yoke.
Have you noticed that Jesus uses the word “rest” twice in those three verses? After looking at them, I decided to look up the meaning of the word rest and these two definitions caught my eye.
One was “relieved from exertion” and another “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, this relief from mental exertion or peace of mind more than ever. And why is this?
When our minds are irritated – when they are experiencing an escalation of intense emotions like fear or anger – we cannot hear the Holy Spirit’s “still small voice.” All of the “emotional noise” drowns out any chance we have to hear the calming voice of the Holy Spirit on the inside of us and the instructions that is waiting for us.
I want peace of mind. What about you?
But, when I read the second meaning of the word rest, I paused in my thinking.
Rest also had a meaning of “something used for support.” As I thought about this definition, numerous examples of support came to mind.
For example, think of a patient in hospital who is in a weakened state after a surgery or illness. The patient will need the assistance of a nurse to get out of bed to start rehabilitation. Now you and I know that the nurse doesn’t enter the room and tell the patient to get up, it’s time for rehab. No. She goes over to the patient’s bed, helps them sit up and then help to get out of the bed. Once the patient is on their feet, the nurse lets the patient use her as support as they walk down the ward.
I also thought of someone else used for support. Do you want to hazard a guess as to who that someone is? It’s Jesus!
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, whenever 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.
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.
(28) Come close to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.
Remember Stevenson said during her worst times she saw only one set of footprints and the Lord said “It was then that I carried you.” Have you ever gone on a long walk with a child? What often happened on the way back home? The child got tired. So, you’d pick him / her up and carry them.
Now here’s the point I am trying to say: When our children needed relief from whatever was troubling them, they came to us and we gave them that relief. Even if that meant picking them up, holding them, or carrying them. That’s what parents do. When we go to Him, our Heavenly Father, he does the same for us.
Now that I’m older with hindsight, I understand why this verse meant so much to the older folks at the church I attended as a child. They, the older folk had grown up during a time when life involved coming out of years of war or for some two world wars. Times were hard and unpleasant. Many of those church older folk did not have good jobs. A lot of the men worked down the mines, worked in other labour jobs, and the women stayed at home raising their children. Their jobs were not who they were. Their jobs were what they did.
And throughout their lives, those church people clung to Jesus’ promise to give them rest when they were weary or felt overwhelmed. It was their anchor. It was the “word from the Lord” that kept them going.
Let’s go back to verse 28. The words weary and burdened describes what so many in the Church are feeling right now because of the constant news about COVID-19. They are feeling mentally and, in some cases, physically “worn out, tired, and fatigued.” But Jesus says, ”Come to Me.”
We must to go to Jesus. He must be the go to person.
And how do we do this? We go to Jesus when we pray. We go to Jesus when we declare His promises in our lives. We go to Jesus when we praise and worship Him. We go to Jesus when we sit quietly in His presence.
Remember what Jesus said in John 14:27 about his peace? Peace I leave with you, my peace give I unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.”
The peace that Jesus gives us is not determined by the circumstances we face. The peace that Jesus gives is not determined by what we see in the news or read in the news. The peace that Jesus gives is “not of this world.” And the only way we will be able to access that peace is through Jesus.
The phrase weary and burdened means to be “overloaded or to carry a heavy burden.” Does this not describe how most people are feeling right now? And perhaps some you are feeling this way too. But Jesus says “Come to Me.”
Jesus gives us THE reason to come to Him for he will give us rest, He will be our support during this battle with COVID-19.
During this time when so many are becoming mentally and physically worn out, Jesus says “Come to Me and receive the peace and quietness that your soul (mind) needs. Come to Me and your soul (mind) will be refreshed and rejuvenated.” If there was ever a time when we needed to “Go to Jesus,” that time is now.
Finally let us now look at the understanding of the importance of the yoke.
(29) 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. (30) For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.
Over the years I have read these verses many times without truly grasping the instructions Jesus is giving to us.
The word yoke means “to bind”. A yoke was a wooden frame placed on the backs of oxen to make them pull in tandem – to yoke them together. Many times a younger ox was yoked to an older more experienced ox so he could learn WHAT TO DO AND HOW TO DO IT.
This is so very important because of what Jesus says next: “and learn of Me”. Jesus says “I am the elder ox and you are still wet behind the ears. Come to Me and yoke yourself to Me. Let Me to teach you how to live as a son and daughter of God. Learn from Me!” Isn’t that a powerful image?
Jesus is saying. “If you will let Me teach you and mentor you, I will show you how to do EVERYTHING THAT I DID when I was on earth!” Oh! That is so powerful! Jesus says “If you will let Me train you and mentor you, I will show you how to do EVERYTHING THAT I DID when I was on earth!”
What Jesus is saying and telling us is that what He needs from us in order for Him to be “the elder ox” is that he needs us to be “gentle and humble in heart”. In other words, we must be willing to be taught His ways, and if we are willing to be taught, He says we “will find and obtain rest for our souls.”
Rest is waiting for us. If we are willing to let Jesus teach us His way, we will obtain that which is already waiting for us – rest for our souls, our minds. What a comfort!
Jesus says “Do you want peace of mind? Come to Me. Do you want to sleep at night? Come to Me. Let Me teach you My ways and you shall have them.”
Jesus says that when we are yoked to Him, when we are “ploughing in tandem with Him,” our lives will not be burdened down with the things life throws at us. He says His burden is light.
Often the burden the ox had to bear was so heavy that he would stumble under its weight. But Jesus says when we are yoked to Him, we will never stumble or fall because it’s His burden.
Jesus’ burden is light. When we are yoked to Jesus our burden becomes His burden. Jesus says His burden is light. His burden is easy. When we purposefully yoke ourselves to Jesus, our burden will be easy!
As our nation and the world battle COVID-19, remember Jesus encourages us to latch on to Him and to follow His footsteps. We know that He has a plan to help us get us through it. He knows exactly what we need to keep us from being overwhelmed by what we hear and by what we see.
But we have to “Come to Jesus.” So I encourage you to let Him take your burden. Rest in Him. He will see us through all of this. That’s His promise to you and to me! Amen
Let us pray
Blessed are you, Lord God, giver of life and light.
You give us of your love, you give us of yourself.
Open our ears to your call and our hearts to your love.
Send us out in the power of your Spirit to proclaim the Good News of your saving love as revealed in our Saviour Jesus Christ.
Blessed are you, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
We give thanks that you sent Jesus to live among us.
We pray that we may share in his mission, that we may pass on the message of the Gospel and show acts of mercy that reveal Gods love.
May your whole Church be moved to share in the ministry that is theirs.
We remember today all involved in the healing ministry.
We ask you to bless all who lead us in our ministry.
Lord, hear us and show us your loving kindness.
We remember all who are suffering and oppressed and forced to do what they do not want to do.
We ask your blessing on all who are seeking to bring liberty and freedom to captive peoples.
Give courage and strength to all who are working for relief agencies and generosity to all who are called upon to support them in their work.
Lord, hear us and show us your loving kindness
We give thanks that you, O God, care for us, body, mind and spirit.
We remember in your presence all suffering people.
We pray especially for those who feel no one listens or cares.
We ask you to bless all who are homeless, all who are deeply in debt.
We pray for all who are drug addicts and all who cannot cope with life.
We remember all who are ill in our community.
Lord, hear us and show us your loving kindness
We rejoice in the Good news of eternal life.
We remember in your presence friends and loved ones who are departed from us.
We share with them in the fellowship of all your saints and commend them and ourselves to your unfailing love.
Merciful father, accept these prayers for the sake of your Son our Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen
And we seal our prayers together in the words that Jesus taught his disciples… the Lord’s prayer:
Our Father, who art in heaven,
Hallowed be thy name, Thy kingdom come,
Thy will be done; on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory, For ever and ever.
Amen
Revd Kevin. Priest at St.Wilfrids and St.Thomas
