Find Rest

Do you ever find yourself weary from just living day to day life in a broken world? Lately there’s been so much going on in my life that I feel like I am never quite able to accomplish everything that is needed.  I’ve felt inadequate, frustrated, and just flat out tired.  (Not to mention SUPER over the political rantings and ridiculousness in our nation.) 

This is what happens when we try to live life on our own; we find ourselves discouraged and exhausted.  When I get to this point, my first response is to basically shut down and block out anything that is not a necessity; survival mode. 

But we were meant to live in community with God and His people; not hiding out in our homes because we “need a break”.  (Side note: Jesus did take time away for Himself to seek the Father, but He didn’t hide from real life.  It’s okay to rest and take refuge in Him.)

God, on the other hand, never sleeps or slumbers.  He does not grow weary.  His strength does not diminish.  He is the inexhaustible God; the fountain that never runs dry.  

In the middle of my most recent “woe is me, life is hard and the world is terrible” phase I was in the middle of working my way through the book of Matthew.  That day in particular, I happened to be in Matthew 11.  

If you’re like me, then you’ve read the chapter many times and have probably quoted for yourself “his yoke is easy and his burden is light”.  We like to remind ourselves of the nice things the Lord offers to us, don’t we?  But how often do we focus on the instructions?  The action steps He calls us to?  

We have a part to play in experiencing the rest Christ has to offer.  Jesus beckons: “Come to me, all of you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.  Take up my yoke and learn from me, because I am lowly and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” Matthew 11:28-29 

Come to Him.  Take up His yoke.  Learn from Him.  Find rest. 

God calls us unto Himself.  May we experience more of who He is and find rest.

Let Him Be A Man

Back in my college days and early 20’s I was just as “I can do anything a man can do” as the next gal.  (In fact, with being a Ministry Major in college, men outnumbered me tremendously and I took great pride in excelling beyond them academically.)

I’ve spent quite a bit of time in the Word since then studying gender differences along with our biblically defined roles and I’ve come to one major conclusion: I can’t do everything a man can do and I don’t want to.

Men have a high calling and that’s a lot of pressure.  They were created to give; to serve; to protect; to lead.

Now don’t get me wrong here, women aren’t meant to be yielding airheads that have no value and lack the ability to be self-sufficient.  But we’ve somehow managed to make everything about us and the poor guys can’t win for losing.

If a man tries to do something for us, we feel the need to “prove” that we can do it for ourselves. But once we’ve nagged and exasperated guys to the point of them no longer trying or desiring to do nice things for us, we complain about how they not very gentlemen-like.  Ladies, we can’t have it both ways.

At the previous church that I worked at, I had a super precious co-worker, and bless his heart, his momma raised him right.  But as I said before, at that point in my life, I felt the need to prove myself and wouldn’t let the poor man do a single thing that I could do for myself.  To be honest, there were even times that I did parts of his job before he had time to just so I could “out work” him.

Well, one day this co-worker and I were heading back into the office (which required a keyless card entry) and we both rushed toward the door to open it.  Fed up with my belligerence, he steps between me and the door, looks me in the eye and says “Wesley, let me serve you in this way.”  

That was a game changer for me.  He wasn’t looking for ways to lord over me or exert his authority. He was trying to serve me.

Ladies, we have nothing to prove here. Men weren’t intended to be our competition; they were meant to be our companions.

Having A Mary Heart In A Martha World

In Luke 10, Luke tells of Jesus and some of his followers arriving to the village of Martha and Mary.  You’re probably familiar with these two sisters and their very different personalities.  Martha is the “worker”.  She keeps herself busy taking care of all the minute details that no one else seems to even think of (or likely care about).  Mary is the passionate “free spirit”. 

Martha, doing what she does best, busies herself with all the preparations. While Martha is working away, her sister Mary is found seated at the Lord’s feet, hanging on His every word.  Likely overwhelmed by the pressure of hosting and being caught up in cooking and cleaning (been there), Martha whines to Jesus. “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to do all the serving alone? Tell her to help me.” (Luke 10:40)  

But Jesus does not rebuke Mary.  Instead, He compassionately tells Martha: “You are worried and bothered about so many things, but only one thing is necessary.  Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.” (Luke 10:42)

May we choose what is better and necessary even when life gets busy.

God, Teach Us to Care

On Tuesdays I usually counsel at the Ruby Snider Ministry Center.  Ruby Snider is a food and clothing pantry available to those in need within our county.  Clients are able to come in every 4 months for assistance and prior to leaving with clothes and food, each client is required to meet with a counselor where he/she presents the Gospel and prays with the individual. 

I’ve had a bit of a Summer cold all week and to be honest, the last thing I wanted to do was go serve at the Center today.  As you can imagine, we encounter folks from all walks of life in the counseling room.  Some have truly come into desperate, crisis-type situations, while others just know how to “milk the system” and live off of the government.  There are many times that I walk clients through the process and complete the forms all while knowing that I’m being manipulated and lied to. 

The easy response is to become frustrated and cynical, but then, right when you’re on the verge of wanting to give up on humanity, you meet someone completely broken and in need of not just food and clothes, but in need of true Hope. 

One of my first clients this morning was a tall, rough looking man in his mid-thirties.  He was new to the Center, so I needed to see his I.D…..he mumbled as he pulled a piece of paper out of his pocket.  His only form of identification was a “felon” I.D., which pretty much consists a photo printed on paper that includes his name, date of birth, and when he was released from jail. 

Clearly embarrassed by the piece of paper now in my hand, he apologized and with tears in his eyes asked if I would feel more comfortable if he met with a man instead.  This man was clearly hurting and the last thing I wanted to do was make him feel more ostracized…he didn’t make me feel uncomfortable or in danger; he made me feel sad. His past mistakes were still looming over him, and his future didn’t seem all that promising either.

This morning Psalm 72 was included in my Bible reading plan.  You’ll never guess what is talked about in Psalm 72: the needy, the poor, he who has no helper, the weak, and the oppressed.

If we know anything about the character of God, we know that he cares for those that are destitute; for the people most easily subjected to oppression and violence.  God not only cares, but he redeems…let that sink in.  Do we care for the “lowly” like the Lord does?