Rest for the weary

Matthew 11:28-30 " Come to me all you who labor and are heavy burdened and I will give you rest.  Take my yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart and you will find rest for your souls.  For My yoke is easy and My burden is light."
   With a week full of very late nights and so much to do, feeling pulled in a million different directions,  I come to the Father desperate to know what this verse means, how to apply it to my life and live it out.  Come to Me, You say?  Here I am before You, for who else has the words of Life?  "...all who are weary and heavy burdened"?  Yup, that's me right now - oh, so weary, doing so many different things that I wonder if I'm doing anything well, thoroughly, with grace, being fully present. "...and I will give you rest."  not might, not could, not if you try hard enough, work hard enough, act good enough, position yourself just right.  No, just come...and I will give REST.  Isn't that a beautiful, inviting word?  REST - invites a deep breath, shoulders drop, heart settles, hope enters, corners of the mouth lift in relief. 
     "Take My yoke upon you..."  Wait.  What?!?  What was all that about REST?  Doesn't He carry the Universe?  Sounds like more than I've got on my shoulders now!  But maybe, maybe if it's shared, if I can just slip in and have Him at my side, know that we're in this together and nothing can separate us...  "And learn from Me" -  He will show how to carry that yoke.  That there might just be the key to it all.  He had late nights, many demands, people pulling him in a million different directions, but He wasn't driven by these external commands, he was led by His time hearing what the Father was saying and doing that, and the voice and guidance of the Father sustained Him.  In a yoke, there are 2 oxen - generally a well-trained strong one on the outside, who carries the bulk of the burden and directs or guides/sets the direction, and an ox in training who is on the inside, strapped in mostly for the ride and training - learning how to take direction, follow commands and do the job.  The lead ox can either be rough, jerking the newbie around and inflicting suffering when he doesn't do it right, or he can be "gentle and lowly in spirit", coming alongside, picking up the slack of our mistakes, faithfully demonstrating over and over in gentleness and humility how to walk with ease under the guidance/authority of the Father and let perfect obedience to and unity with the Master's will make the yoke easy and burden light.  Rather than fighting the yoke, learn to submit to it, making the journey restful, peace deep down in the soul.
Come to Me
Refrain 

Come to me all who labour and are heavy burdened,
And I shall give you rest.
Take up my yoke and learn from me,
For I am meek and humble of heart.
And you’ll find rest for your souls,
Yes, my yoke is easy and my burden is light.

1. The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall never be in need,
Fresh and green are the meadows where he gives me rest.

2. Beside peaceful waters you restore my true self;
There you lead me to walk in the path of new life.

3. Should I be surrounded by the shadows of death,
I will not fear, for you are steadfast in your love.

4. Before my deep hunger you spread out your feast.
My skin you anoint with the richest oil.

5. Pursue me, O God, with your fathomless love,
In your tent let me dwell all the days of my life.

Text: Paraphrase of Psalm 23 
Composer: Gregory Norbet (1971, revised text 1994) 

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