Rest for the weary
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.
In the early days of our country, no one worked on Sunday. Business stopped. Farmers stayed home. Families spent time together. Everyone rested. Our world today is very different. We are so focused on making that extra dollar and staying competetive that we rush from activity to activity with barely a breath.
So it's not much of a surprise that, according to a National Health Statistics Bureau survey, 33.9% of all Americans suffered stress-related illnesses in 1995 (http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/hp2000/mentalhlth/objtbls.pdf)
The same study shows that we have a high suicide rate -- also related to stress. Ironically, stress and stress-related illnesses cut into the very economic productivity we are so desperately trying to boost with long hours and long work weeks.
Our reluctance to rest even affects our relationships and families. More women are entering the workforce than ever before -- and divorce is higher than ever before. Unfortunately, because so many families are two-income families, it is very difficult for a one-income family to "compete." Prices rise with incomes because more income means greater demand. Thus, demand from two-income families increases prices for one-income families. In effect, it has become nearly impossible to raise a family on one income, especially in urban areas where housing costs are high. The rat race has become a vicious circle in which time with family gets squeezed out of our lives in place of time at work or school. There seems to be no escape.
The pressures of the rat race are nothing new. In fact, they are very, very old. They all stem
from the fall, when God told Adam (Genesis 3:19), "In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou [art], and unto dust shalt thou return." From the moment of our fall, we doomed ourselves to a life of toil and trouble. And not just physical toil -- in our fallen state, we must also engage constantly in spiritual toil. Always struggling with our own flesh to resist the sin that destroys us.
As Paul says(Romans 7:23-25), "But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death? I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin."
And indeed we are captives, slaves, to the sin that constantly assaults us. But the God who brought the Israelites out of slavery in Egypt offers us rest. "Come unto me ALL ye that labour and are heavy laden and I will give you rest." ALL are invited to the Lord's rest. To rest from the struggle with sin, not just in this life, but for eternity. All you have to do is come.
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.
In the early days of our country, no one worked on Sunday. Business stopped. Farmers stayed home. Families spent time together. Everyone rested. Our world today is very different. We are so focused on making that extra dollar and staying competetive that we rush from activity to activity with barely a breath.
So it's not much of a surprise that, according to a National Health Statistics Bureau survey, 33.9% of all Americans suffered stress-related illnesses in 1995 (http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/hp2000/mentalhlth/objtbls.pdf)
The same study shows that we have a high suicide rate -- also related to stress. Ironically, stress and stress-related illnesses cut into the very economic productivity we are so desperately trying to boost with long hours and long work weeks.
Our reluctance to rest even affects our relationships and families. More women are entering the workforce than ever before -- and divorce is higher than ever before. Unfortunately, because so many families are two-income families, it is very difficult for a one-income family to "compete." Prices rise with incomes because more income means greater demand. Thus, demand from two-income families increases prices for one-income families. In effect, it has become nearly impossible to raise a family on one income, especially in urban areas where housing costs are high. The rat race has become a vicious circle in which time with family gets squeezed out of our lives in place of time at work or school. There seems to be no escape.
The pressures of the rat race are nothing new. In fact, they are very, very old. They all stem
from the fall, when God told Adam (Genesis 3:19), "In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou [art], and unto dust shalt thou return." From the moment of our fall, we doomed ourselves to a life of toil and trouble. And not just physical toil -- in our fallen state, we must also engage constantly in spiritual toil. Always struggling with our own flesh to resist the sin that destroys us.
As Paul says(Romans 7:23-25), "But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death? I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin."
And indeed we are captives, slaves, to the sin that constantly assaults us. But the God who brought the Israelites out of slavery in Egypt offers us rest. "Come unto me ALL ye that labour and are heavy laden and I will give you rest." ALL are invited to the Lord's rest. To rest from the struggle with sin, not just in this life, but for eternity. All you have to do is come.
posted by Robert at 8:59 PM
2 comments
