"Come to Me, 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 you souls" (Matthew 11:28-29).

These words catch me mid-stride.  Who labors?  Who is laden?  Who desires rest?  I, for one.  The directive is: "Come to Me. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me."  The discovery is: "You will find rest for your souls."   Often all the explanation needed for the exhaustion of my soul is found in my response to Christ's directive.  When Christ says "Come to Me," I am prone to answer, "I'll be there in a minute."  When He says, "Take My yoke upon you," I might say, "First let me finish what I am trying to do."  When He says, "Learn from Me," I may say, "Hold on; I've almost got this problem figured out."   Yet there will be rest, for Christ will fulfill His own directives.  

Jesus taught this while going though the grain fields on the Sabbath.  His disciples were hungry, and began to pluck heads of grain and to eat.  While the world labored to keep Sabbatical laws, the disciples plucked grain, ate, and found rest.  As always, the disciples' relationship with Jesus helps us with ours.  Can you hear their imploring words to you?  "Come to Jesus!  Enter the grain field with Him and eat of the Staff of Life.  Take His yoke upon you and learn from Him; you will find rest for your souls."    

Take His yoke upon you; you can trust Him with your cares.  Learn from Him; you can trust Him to figure out what you cannot.  Come to the Lord of the Sabbath, and enter company with the One who gives rest to restless-prone souls.

Author: Carolyn Roehrig