Matthew 11:28-30

Jesus said, "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 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. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."

Blessed Word of God,

You are my Heavenly Haven of Rest. Yes, I gratefully accept Your heartfelt invitation to come! You know I'm worn out and weary from warring with the world! The battle is fierce. Afflictions assail me. Problems pursue me. Temptation torments me. Religious leaders impose their self-righteous rituals and routines on me. People press me to perform for a temporary prize. The weight of it all is crushing me! Thank You for giving me access to Your heavenly home, a haven of rest.

There in Your workshop, You'll design and make a yoke to perfectly fit me. Having never worn such an awkward apparatus, when I initially take it and put it on, it will be incredibly uncomfortable. Struggling and crying, I'll relentlessly try to get out from under it. However, if I stop kicking and screaming and submit to it, putting my shoulders to the task of pulling the burden, I'll quickly find that the yoke You've made for me makes my life easier.

You are a Gentleman; a humble Master. Never cruel, mean-spirited or harsh, You genuinely care for Your children. Take my stubborn and obstinate heart, and teach me to surrender to Your will, assuredly knowing that nothing will harm me, but that every burden I've been called to pull has been placed there by You for my good. Show me how to triumphantly work through tough and troubling times Your Way. With my life deliberately devoted to Your service, I'll joyfully be Your hands and feet whenever and wherever I go.

No matter the cost, I faithfully accept Your generous invitation to be at one with You. In perfect relationship with You, I'll be satisfied and others will seek the Heavenly Haven of Rest, Jesus in me. Alleluia! Amen.

Jesus is calling anyone, anywhere who hears the invitation from the Blessed Word of God to come and find rest for their weary souls. The price is high - it will cost you your life - but the dividends are out of this world! Will you come, take and learn?

Jesus was a trained carpenter. In those days, carpenters didn't build houses and furniture. Carpenters usually spent their time building farm implements. Jesus must have carved out a lot of ox yoke as He was growing up in Nazareth. Now, as our Savior, He is still carving out individualized, perfectly fitting yokes for each of His children. It would do us good to learn to surrender to the yoke, because nothing fits our lives so well as the plan which Jesus designed for it. When we are surrendered to His will, we can be absolutely sure that He will allow nothing to harm us, but that every burden we are called upon to pull has been placed there for our good, Romans 8:28. We can also know that when we get back to the barn, we will see that all our labor has not been in vain, Romans 8:18.