I’ve never liked pumpkin spice lattes. I feel this a dangerous confession at the beginning of September when scents of pumpkin and cinnamon find you around every corner.
But, I’m a summer girl. I like going inside at 8:30 pm after a full day of swimming, gardening, and catching lightning bugs with a little sunburn on my face.
You see, pumpkin spice means I’m about to drive home from work in the dark with a big coat on. I’ll be forced to go inside and do what?…..rest?!
Maybe that is my real problem.
Rest is hard for most of us. My season of life requires my motor to run almost all the time. I have (the best) full-time job, three beautiful little children at home, a husband I enjoy spending time with, a church community—you get the picture.
But since I am in confession mode, I actually struggle to rest even when my calendar is clear. I’m sure some of you are head-nodding silently to yourselves right now.
But God tells us to chill out. In fact, I’d argue that if you cannot access rest you may not be the best testimony to God’s goodness in your life (I’m including myself here!).
Matthew 11:28-30 famously tells us:
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 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. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”
A yoke (pictured above) is a heavy device used to join two working animals so they can carry a load together. God is telling us—if you are joined with me, the yoke isn’t heavy at all. In fact, with His yoke, it isn’t just easier, you will actually find rest.
What a promise! And for some of us, how convicting….If I am truly yoked with the Lord, I should be someone who can rest.
At GraceWorks, sometimes the largest impact we can make is helping someone take a sigh of relief for the first time in a long time. Our neighbors come to us in need of food for their families, help keeping the roof over their heads or lights on. Imagine how many restless nights they’ve had by the time they make it through our doors.
If we welcome our weary neighbors as people of long to-do lists and action plans, we have missed an incredibly important step—we must yoke them to the Lord first. Invite them to feel the lightness of His companionship. Let them rest. We know the Lord will walk with them much farther than we can, so set them up for success and help yoke them to the Lord.
This reminds me of my favorite quote from one of our recent neighbors. Montea, who is raising her son and four grandsons, one of which was fighting for his life with cancer, came to GraceWorks for help. Of course, we are honored to provide food, but I am so proud we were able to do more. Montea shares: “One of the volunteers, Barbara….I mean [**ENTER BIG SIGH HERE**] she gave me that hug you need when you need to take a big exhale. She just made me feel loved and like really, really cared for.”
What better way to spend our time, but to make someone feel loved, and share the love of the Lord with them? Maybe we should put that on our long to-do lists and packed calendars.
You can watch more of her incredible story here: Montea’s Story
For those who are having restless nights and not sure where to turn for help—come see us at GraceWorks. You can start here: www.graceworks.help
For the volunteers who have slowed down enough to give neighbors your time and your hugs—thank you. God is using you in miraculous ways.
For the hustlers out there—put your feet up. Fight the urge to make a list and check it off. Sit with the Lord and ask him to show you just how cared for you really are. Maybe even try a pumpkin spice latte this week and see if it tastes better.
If it doesn’t, his yoke is still easy. Just order a black coffee next time. 😉
—Alicia
So beautifully stated. It’s so easy to love on others and we have no idea how much it means to them