Release It!
Come to me, all 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. Matthew 11:28-29 (ESV)
How many times have we tried to fix things that are beyond our ability? Our intentions are admirable but try as we will, our omniscient God cannot be shoved from His throne.
We become heavy laden trying to find a way to make something work. At what point do we invite Him into our situations? He promises rest, however, we just keep plodding on, beating our head against the wall and wondering why we aren’t being successful? When we finally come to the end of ourselves, we utter words like these: “Lord, I cannot do this alone! I need Your help!” He is very patient and quietly tells us that He is with us and will never abandon us. Even though we have made a mess, He is present.
What is “it”? For as many people who ask that question, there are that many varying answers. The most common ones are probably health, finance issues due to health, relationships, and world peace etc. The idiom, closing the barn door after the horse is out, truly fits each situation. Could these issues have been prevented? Most likely, yes! But we didn’t include Him in the initial planning. We are still responsible for whatever damage we’ve done but at least we know that He will lead us through it and we will eventually find peace.
Some lessons are painful. But through those difficult lessons, we learn and grow. He wants to be part of our everyday decisions—the big and the small ones. The more we release our burdens to Him, the calmer our days.
God is bigger than we think! There is nothing our God cannot do, but we must give Him permission to take over. To release our fears and worries to Him means we are no longer pushing the plow by ourselves. Two yoked together as a team makes the work easier. Once again, we must realize that doing life alone is overwhelming and impossible.
We all want peace and rest, and this verse tells us how to find it. Release everything to Him and experience the changes. Take a sacred pause and talk to Him. Repent for trying to usurp His power. Invite Him into every second of every day.
Heavenly Father, thank You for being ever present even when we make messes. Help us to team up with You and find rest. AMEN.