JUNE 17, Matthew 11:28-30

Are you weary and heavy laden with a load of care? Some of us are entangled with the affairs of this world. We are so busy with our studies and enrichment activities. Still some of us are tired from our struggles with sin. We try to be good to make our parents happy, but we still fall short and end up disobeying them. We have bad habits and sins that we easily succumb to. This daily struggle also makes us very tired. How can we find rest?

Firstly, Jesus says “Come unto me”. If you have been working very hard and using your own strength to cope, He bids you to go to Him. But you have to make that first step to go to Jesus and believe in Him. Our instincts will call to us to look for comfort from our friends, and very often worldly music and entertainment. But all these will not give your tired souls peace and rest. They only make things worse. True rest is only promised in Jesus.

Secondly, we experience this rest by taking on the yoke of Christ. A yoke is a wooden beam placed between a pair of oxen to help them work together as they pull along a heavy load behind them. When we carry our own yoke, we want to pull through life on our own strength, and carry our sins and affairs on our tired backs. It’s only a matter of time before we will be crushed under its load! Jesus says that His yoke is easy, and His burden light. It is easy because we no longer pull it with our own strength but by His strength. It is light because He takes away our baggage of sin and sinful influences. We are free to serve Him without the weight of sin on our backs! When we trust in Jesus and simply obey His commands and directions, we find that life become so much simpler.

Thirdly, Jesus says to learn of Him for He is meek and lowly in heart. This speaks of a humble and submissive attitude. When we gladly humble ourselves and submit to God’s will and leading, we find that we can truly rest. The future is in God’s hands and whatever happens we know that all things will work together for our good.

Write Isaiah 26:3 here and memorise God’s promise of peace for your encouragement!

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Thought: Only Jesus can provide true rest and peace for my troubled heart.

Prayer: Father in heaven, make me humble and to take the yoke of Christ upon me. Grant me heavenly peace and rest in You. In Jesus’ name, Amen.