Tired

I‘m tired.

This past week I’ve been putting myself under a lot of unnecessary stress. It’s like littlest problems become huge monsters ready to eat me alive. Anxiety disorder will do that to you. But I’m sick of it all. I’m tired of struggling with my demons. I’m tired of living in a world full of trouble and turmoil. I’m tired of all this fear and loathing. I’m tired and I want to go to bed.

It’s times like these when I think about Matthew 11:28: “Come to me, all of you who are weary and loaded down with burdens, and I will give you rest.” What does this rest look and feel like? Sometimes I naively think it means God will take away all trials and pressures out of my life, but that’s not the case. In John 16:33, Jesus says, “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”

I have overcome the world.

For some reason I’m always forgetting this. For thirty-three years Jesus lived among mankind. He knows all about the trials, temptations, and troubles of life–even public execution and humiliation on the cross! He did all that to take the burden off of our shoulders. “For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” (Matthew 11:30)

I once saw a church sign that said, “God doesn’t promise an easy ride, but a safe landing.” So that’s what I think this rest Jesus is referring to is: the peace of knowing that in the end, everything is going to be okay.