Right now, I’m really loving the little “Our Daily Bread” devotionals. The little devotional bit is generally pretty good and the varied Bible passages that go along with it are the best.

In today’s:

If you find that Christianity exhausts you, draining you of your energy, then you are practicing religion rather than enjoying a relationship with Jesus Christ. Your walk with the Lord will not make you weary; it will invigorate you, restore your strength, and energize your life.

And the passage today was Matthew 11:25-30. This week has been turning into a bit of a frenzy for me, and of course, this is exactly what I needed. Jesus said his yoke is easy, and his burden is light. So that means when I feel like the burden is heavy, I’ve stopped sharing the yoke with him, or am trying to move out of his rhythm.

If you’re familiar with the yoke, it’s a ridged piece of wood that sits on top of the shoulders of two oxen side by side. It’s easy to imagine how difficult it would be if one of the oxen was trying to move faster or a different direction. So difficult that it’s impossible. I like to think God’s grace works that way. I share a yoke with Jesus, and he’ll not let me get too far ahead or break off to the side… Instead, life just gets difficult, and he bares as much of the burden when I’m fighting him as I do. Maybe more.

The best and easiest thing is to nestle back into Jesus’ rhythm. It doesn’t mean the work is over, but that it’s light and easy, and most importantly, I can bare it. So that’s what I’m going for today. 

There’s more good stuff along those lines in the ODB for today, so feel free to read it if you need the same encouragement.