A yoke that fits

Then Jesus said, "Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light. (Matthew 11:28-30 NLT)

I keep coming back to this lately. Jesus offering rest to the weary through the yoke that fits, through the load that is easy to bear.

He speaks of finding rest by learning from him. Finding rest while carrying the burden that He has specifically made for us. The concept of rest coming through burdens, or stresses, seems counter-intuitive to me. But then I remembered that I might know what He's talking about.

I experienced it for the first time a few months ago, very briefly. I had an opportunity to try something new. Something difficult, something that in one sense was going to be very hard and require all of my ability and stamina. But it was for something that I loved, something I was intensely passionate about. When I was making the decision whether to go for it or not, I remember being energized by the prospect of what was coming, both the excitement for the positives, but also an excitement for overcoming the challenges. I viewed it as an adventure, and it brought life into my soul.

Contrast that experience with my current situation at work: an endless parade of demands and impossible deadlines that have to be met, for a career path that I can't stand. My sleep has been spotty for months. My face is dull, my diet unhealthy, my body literally aching as I type this blog, my personal life deteriorating with every passing month. The stress is quite literally more than I am able to cope with, and my life (including spiritually) has taken a back seat to this ever-present weight.

This yoke doesn't fit.

I don't think the "easy" and "light" that Jesus was talking about meant a full removal of difficulties in our lives. After all, that isn't how Earth works. But maybe He was trying to tell us that His path for us fits us better than any path we can carve out on our own. That the burdens that arise while we are wearing His plan for us - His yoke - will be more like adventures than stresses.

Maybe that's what He means in this verse. Maybe that's what He's trying to help us grab onto, believe in, and move towards.

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A note: I understand that even while walking in His will, we will experience times that try us and stretch us; but what if even then, there is a way to rest - truly - in His peace? What if His yoke still fits in those times, too?

(If you aren't familiar with how yokes work in farming, it's pretty cool and clarifies this concept even more, including the idea that He shares the bulk of the weight in the load. Look it up if you get a chance.)

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