This Earthly Body

FaithWalkDaily 9/8/2008

Matt 11:28-30
"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 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. 30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light." NIV

Sometimes I just want to throw in the towel and quit everything. I'm just flat out weary. Entrapped in this human body, a temporary shelter in need of repairs, I long to be free. This skin is etched with myriad lines like a road map of my life, veins are choked, my mind grows dim, pains abound from head toe, and there seems no end in sight. Yes, I'm weary.

Violins at ready: Nobody's coming to my pity party!

As I rest with a sinus headache that has refused to take a hike for several days, I just want to feel good again. Whatever that means. I can't remember my last pain free day since - well, honestly, I can't remember. I've been in pain of one kind or another for just about as far back as I can remember. I didn't always sit around feeling sorry for myself, hoping you'd join my bandwagon with your woeful violins and mournful fugues.

Let's face it, a gaggle of naysayers singing the woes of humanity would not be a popular band. And no one accepted my invitation anyway. Misery loves company and doesn't often find it. This is a lonely place to be.

Life hurts. We have options. We can sit around alone feeling sorry for ourselves and complaining, or we can turn to the One who suffered more pain than we can even begin to imagine.

Jesus invites us to share His yoke which is "easy and light." The purpose of a yoke is to distribute the weight between beasts of similar size to create a managable load for the working animals to carry. Likewise, Jesus is saying, we're in this together - seeking after the will of God. Come, share my yoke, and I'll take the load off of you.

One thing I've learned as one who bears a permanent thorn, His grace is sufficient for me, for His power is made perfect in weakness (2Cor. 12:7.) I can pray in any situation, no matter how bleak, how weak or how tired I am. I can pray. And the burden rests with Him. Being weak forces me to lean on my Savior.

This is only a temporary station, this earthly body. Praise God, it isn't my final destination!

Heavenly Father, thank You for the reminder that You're always there for us in our time of need. Though we don't always feel it, we can know you bear the burden with us, Your grace is sufficient to see us through. Trusting in my Savior, amen.

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