Yoked and Burdened

I was talking to a friend today and we were discussing how good life is when you know you’re within God’s will, yet how difficult it can be to stay there.  So many things draw us away, distract us, pull us off course. 

As Christian wives and mothers, so often we find ourselves feeling overwhelmed and stressed.  We have lists and responsibilities that pull us in every direction and keep us in sprint mode, because the time we have seems too short for the commitments and chores that we find continually before us.  We look ahead to tomorrow and next week and we’re tired just thinking about it.   By the end of the day, we realize that we haven’t enjoyed much, if any, of it, and that we haven't given our best and fullest to a single thing.  

But then we read Jesus’ words, and He tells us, 

“Come to me all who are burdened and heavy laden and I will give you rest.   Take my yoke upon you for my yoke is easy and my burden is light…”

These words should be a slap in the face when we find ourselves frazzled and ragged.  We are called to be yoked to Jesus, to work alongside Him in this world to do His Father’s will, and we are promised that the yoke will be easy and the burden light.  So why do we feel so burdened, weary, and overwhelmed?  

Take a deep breath.    

Somehow, in some way, we have become yoked to something besides Jesus and maybe, just maybe, we’re even doing work that is not in our current job description!  You know the old saying, “You’ve dished up more than you can chew”, well perhaps we’ve dished up more than God has put on our plate! 

What God calls us to do shouldn’t be stressful, burdensome, or overwhelming, for He has promised never to give us more than we can handle with His help.  The yoke is easy and the burden light...

Look at Jesus’ ministry.

He did what he was called to do and He did it perfectly.  He went where he needed to go, but Jesus didn’t run anywhere did he? He didn’t try to heal every single person that needed healing, or try to teach every person, in the towns He visited.  He walked slowly and purposefully towards His destinations, performing miracles as the opportunities came, completing one task at a time, touching one life at a time…and he didn’t look for more.  No one knew more of the work that needed to be accomplished in this world than Jesus, of the needs of His people, yet we don't see in scripture Jesus trying to reach them all, or do it all in His time here. 

Jesus made sure that He took His time doing the jobs before Him.  He did them well, and completely, meeting each individual’s needs far beyond merely healing and teaching. 

Though Jesus knew exactly what His future held, we don’t see in scripture that He spent time or worry on it.  Not on what awaited Him in Jerusalem, or what tomorrow held, or whether He was doing enough. 

Has God called you to do something?  (If you have been saved, the answer is yes!) 

Are you fulfilling the purpose that He has for you? 

Are you walking forward with single-mindedness towards that end or are you zigging, zagging in all directions, to wherever you feel pulled—by society or some other pressure?   

Could it be that you’re overwhelmed because you’ve chosen to add things to that plate that you shouldn’t try to chew, even things that are noble and good?

We need to be like Christ, especially in this.  Slow down.  Walk with purpose.  Never miss an opportunity to do God’s work.  Take time to do well what you know He wants you to do and stop worrying about whether or not you’re doing enough when you're doing it!  There will always be more people to heal, more people to teach, but it’s not our job to solve all the worlds’ problems…it’s our job to do our job and do it well.  

Take a look at what’s on your plate.  Does it need to be there?

Take a look and what is weighing you down, it can’t be what God’s called you to do.  How can you change that?

Are you yoked to Christ?  Are you intentionally doing his work, moving where He’s moving?  Or are you stuck in the rat-race that is life seeking 'success' or money or possessions?  Only when you are yoked to Christ, pursuing only His will and purpose will you find rest and joy to its fullest.  

As I look around me, I see so many people who are caught up in the world, yoked to so many things that aren't Christ, and burdened with loads they were never meant to bear.

I see women who God has blessed with children, longing to be the best mother that they can be, to raise them in the most God-honoring way possible, but they are pulled away by so many obligations and good intentions that at the end of the day they know that they haven't done their job to the fullest.   At the end of the day they are stressed out to the breaking point, stretched too thin to give any more of themselves...

Mothers, if you don't have a vision for your life, if you don't know what God's will and purpose is for you in this world, take a look at your children.  God gave them to you.  Whether you planned them or not, they are a gift and responsibility given to you by God Himself!  So, if you don't know anything else, you can know without a shadow of doubt that God has called you to be a mother!   

God has told us that if we are yoked to Him, our job as a mother will be easy and the burden will be light!   If it's not, then we have to take a serious, hard look at what is weighing us down and causing the task of mothering to be so difficult.  Only you can answer these questions for yourself.   

For me personally, though I have embraced motherhood as my main purpose right now in life, I still find myself burdened and overwhelmed.  Here are a few things that I need to constantly review, and often renew my mind in order to free myself from bondage.

Homeschooling—when I become motivated by the world’s standards of success, when I compare myself or my children to others, and when I let either direct how I teach or construct our days.  When I feel that I’m solely responsible for raising them to be who they will be, it is easy to feel overwhelmed and burdened, because I have forgotten that I'm yoked to Christ and He is in this with me!  When I forget that God has a purpose for each of my children and He will be faithful to complete the work He has begun in each of them.

Household chores—when there is too much clutter to manage, too many clothes to wash and put away, too many toys to keep organized.  This is all on me.  Acquiring all of these things is not part of seeking His Kingdom, or pursuing anything other than worldly treasure. This truly is gluttony and excess, even greed and wastefulness! If my focus never strayed from contentment and thankfulness for God’s provision, I wouldn’t have put myself in the pickle that causes so much of the stress in my life! I know beyond a doubt that I need to simplify and bless others with our excesses.  Seriously, there are people within 10 miles of us that can't afford thrift store clothing and my kids have more than any of us can handle cleaning and putting away...shame on me.

Projects, Plans, and Goals—Worrying about what tomorrow holds...I so easily get caught up in worrying about not only what’s going to happen tomorrow and the next day, but also about what I’m supposed to do and be doing with my life--what my future holds when this stage of my life is over.  I spend, sometimes, a great deal of time planning for “then” and I miss out on today.  When we are out of debt, we will do...When we are settled in our final home, we will have time to...When the kids are grown, then I can...so on and so forth. 

The question, “Am I doing enough?”—I look around me and see what others are doing…I think of my own potential, things I always thought I’d do, things I want to do, things that I know I could do and worry that I should do; but then realize that there is not enough time to do them all!  Even the thought of neglecting to “be all that I can be” is stressful…I need to be satisfied to be what God has called me to be and do what He’s called me to do and put before me right now.  Tomorrow will be a different day.  Next year will bring us different circumstances.  In 20 years my purpose may look very different than it does today...But I need to constantly refocus, remembering where God has me today, what He has for me to do today, and I must always purpose to give it my full, and best attention. 

Finances—when I forget that God is a faithful provider will meet all of our needs for today and tomorrow!  It is so easy to look around at the things that I'd like to have someday, or things that I'd like to do someday...even good, and noble things.  My heart longs to pour myself out financially for those in need, and there are so many needs these eyes can see.  But right now it is not possible for us to give the way I wish to.  It would be easy for me to take my eyes off of what is before me, what God has placed before  me, looking off in the distance and pursuing riches in order to serve others.  It would be easy for me to encourage my husband to work a little harder, a little more, so that we can do A, B, and C.  Some things like vacations are more selfish in nature, but mostly my desires for money are motivated by a longing to give generously.

Along these same lines, God has been showing me that I need to be faithful with what I have been given, with what I have right now.  What does that mean for me?  We literally just make ends meet (hopefully when we sell the house and get out from under mortgages and are forever debt free, that won't always be the case!).   We don't have extra cash to put into anything that I care about deeply...but we do have something.   We have time and energy!

This goes back to above where I talked about projects.   We have time and energy, and lots, and lots of plans.  There is always some building project going on around here, always so much to do that it's easy to turn a blind eye to the needs of others, needs that require a sacrifice of time and energy we so desperately need for our own plans...God has really been opening my eyes to see that while we are so busy seeking our earthly kingdom with our time and energy, we may be missing out on the opportunities He is putting in front of us to do His work serving others!  We need to be faithful with a little, and He will not only bless it (our time and money), He will give an increase!  

There are so many more things that should be on this list.  Hopefully I'll remember to add them as they come to mind, because, as much as anyone, I need to change these things so that I can maintain focus on my calling for today. I too need to be transformed by the constant renewing of my mind so that I can know what God's will is for me.  I need to break off the yokes that the world, and I have placed upon me, and cast off the burdens in exchange for what Christ promised is easy and light.

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