When life is crazy busy

“Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.

For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

Matthew 11:28-30 [KJV]

Cabbage white butterfly

“How’s things?” I asked someone recently.

“There is so much happening right now,” she said, pressing her hands against her temples. “You should see my planner for the month. It is going to be a great month, but there are all these extra things, and I have all the usual commitments too. I’m crazy busy!”

Any English teacher (Hi Mum) will groan at the expression ‘crazy busy’. It’s the slang, shortened form of saying, “I am so busy it is driving me crazy”. Evidently, the speaker is feeling overwhelmed, stressed and/or anxious about what they are thinking about, what is happening, or what needs to be done. Anyone can feel overwhelmed at any stage of life. It can happen in times of chaos or times of calm, for even a seemingly ‘quiet’ life does not always equal a quiet mind.

Feeling overwhelmed affects us physically. We struggle to sleep, our muscles tense, and our heart rate increases. It affects us mentally. We become anxious, discouraged, depressed, and our mood can fluctuate dramatically, in turn negatively affecting relationships with others. And it affects us spiritually. Worries distract us from focusing during prayer or listening to preaching. They also leave us vulnerable to temptations that falsely promise to either fix concerns or make us forget them.

When I was feeling overwhelmed recently, the Lord reminded me of Matthew 11:28-30, “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Sometimes Christians can almost dismiss this verse as just a call to salvation for non-Christians. It is true that nothing wearies or burdens a soul like the guilt of sin. But these verses are also an encouragement to every overwhelmed Christian. Let’s look together at the instructions in the verses and then the promised reward.

Firstly, Jesus says, “Come unto me.” It means the same as when a parent says to their child, “Come to Daddy.” The parent expects the child to stop doing what they are doing, and instead move close to their parent. Similarly, the Lord ask us to stop trying to work everything out ourselves and instead to come to Him. Psalm 55:22 says, “Cast thy burden upon the LORD, and he shall sustain thee: he shall never suffer the righteous to be moved.” We are not to keep any of our worries: 1 Peter 5:7 says, “Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.” We come in faith (Hebrews 11:6), humbly confessing our sin and inadequacy (2 Chronicles 7:14), and acknowledging, in the words of the prayer Jesus taught His disciples, “Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever” (Matthew 6:13b). It’s easy to say that we will come to the Lord, but our sinful hearts find this very hard to do. The Lord says ‘surrender’, and pride immediately screams, “No way!” God says, “My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness” (2 Corinthians 12:9a). Our society preaches a different religion, one of self-sufficiency and self-empowerment that scornfully rejects dependence on anyone, let alone God. Yet our promise keeping Lord simply repeats that the way of rest is the way of surrender. As the old hymn, “What a Friend we have in Jesus” by Joseph Scriven, says, “O what peace we often forfeit / O what needless pain we bear / All because we do not carry / Everything to God in prayer!” Let us come, and come again, to the Lord.

The second instruction given in these verses is “Take my yoke upon you.” The yoke referred to is likely a wooden harness that would connect a team of oxen together to pull a cart or plough. One ox would be the lead animal. It would set the pace and direction, and if the other animals submitted to its leadership, all would go well. But if the other oxen rebelled, there would be consequences for them. The work would be harder, and the troublesome ox would be punished or rebuked. The parallels between this picture of yoked oxen and our ongoing relationship with Christ are obvious. Christ is the leader, the Lord of our lives, and through our salvation we are yoked to Him. Each day, we have a choice: are we going to follow the Lord’s leading, or are we going to follow our own way? Sometimes – I confess I have done this – our actions say, “God, here’s my plan, can you put your stamp of approval on it, and bless me?” Instead, we need to recognise Christ is our leader, and pray like the Psalmist, “Shew me thy ways, O LORD; teach me thy paths” (Psalm 25:4), and “For thou art my rock and my fortress; therefore for thy name’s sake lead me, and guide me” (Psalm 31:3). Being yoked together with Christ also reminds us that we are labourers. Oxen are yoked together to work. The Christian life is full of blessing, but those blessings involve hard work. 1 Corinthians 3:9 reminds us, “For we are labourers together with God: ye are God's husbandry, ye are God's building.” There will always be work to be done, but when yoked with Christ, and following His lead, our “labour is not in vain in the Lord” (1 Corinthians 15:58b).

Thirdly, Jesus says, “Learn of me.” This statement can be interpreted as either an instruction to follow, or a blessing of being yoked with Christ. Both interpretations are possible in the context, are supported by other Scripture, and are, in a practical sense, inseparable. Throughout scripture, we are urged to prioritise learning about God. 2 Peter 3:18 says, “But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and for ever. Amen.” This comes through obedience: Jesus said in John 14:21, “He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him.” So while, we are told to actively seek to learn of God, it’s also a fruit of being yoked to Him, and walking in fellowship with Him.

What reward does God promise us? Rest. But what does rest mean, especially when God’s will can involve hard work? In the Bible, the word rest usually refers primarily to a mental state, rather than going to sleep. There is the rest of knowing we can not lose our salvation: “And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand” (John 10:28). There is the rest of God’s promise to never leave us; “Lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world” (Matthew 28:20b). There is also the rest of knowing God is in control, no matter how much we might feel evil triumphs, “Rest in the LORD, and wait patiently for him: fret not thyself because of him who prospereth in his way, because of the man who bringeth wicked devices to pass” (Psalm 37:7). There is the rest of knowing the loving, Almighty Lord Himself carries our burdens, “Cast thy burden upon the LORD, and he shall sustain thee” (Psalm 55:22a). There are too many applications of what rest looks like to cover here, but I want to briefly mention one more When you obey the Lord, and follow His leading, there is the rest of knowing that you are exactly where God wants you to be. Sometimes life is challenging and we feel overwhelmed. Frankly, I’ve often wondered why the Lord called someone like me, with my tendency to migraines, to be a writer. From a secular perspective, it’s a foolish career choice, and I am often overwhelmed. Yet, by faith, I’ve held to this verse, “Faithful is he that calleth you, who also will do it” (1 Thessalonians 5:24). There have been so many times I’ve cried out, “I just can’t!”, and yet the Lord replies softly, “You can’t. I can.” Maybe you’re also feeling overwhelmed. But if you are doing God’s will, you will find in Christ a capacity and enabling that is literally superhuman, and a peace that no earthly circumstances can destroy. Ask Him for wisdom to know what to do (James 1:5), His grace in your weakness (2 Corinthians 12:9), His strength and enabling (Psalm 28:7), and His peace when your heart is troubled (John 14:27).

Regardless of how overwhelmed we feel, let us remember our loving Lord says to us, “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”