Learning Along The Way

How Do You Cope When Your Heart is Heavy?

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News that causes you to gasp.

Skies that are acrid with smoke. Possessions, homes, pets, LIVES lost.

Text messages and phone calls that shift the earth off its known axis; from where I sit anyway. Cancer.

All three things happened Friday. My heart sank like a rock into water. Heavy for all the hard things.

How do you cope when your heart is heavy?

Circumstances like these may be our training ground; seeing the hurts of others and feeling the weight of their losses can cause a desire to respond, to help in some way. What if we don’t know what’s the best thing to do?

Pray.

I know there is at least one person reading this whose response to that suggestion was something like:” that’s not doing anything. What am I supposed to DO?” How do I know that? Because that was me.

I’d hear a person who had been a Christ-follower longer than me tell a group of women to pray and because of where I was in my faith journey, I didn’t think that was as important as getting out and gathering donations or making meals or whatever physical thing seemed like the best next thing to do.

Don’t get me wrong: physical actions are often the thing that praying can lead to. But doing doesn’t shift your heavy heart. 

Doing without praying distracts your heart. Doing alone won’t lift your heart.

Only God can lift your/my heavy heart. Talking to Him, telling Him what is weighing your heart down is exactly the place to begin.

It is a brave step to admit your heart is heavy. I’ve tried to go about my regular life without acknowledging the weightiness. I am cranky, grumpy and not nice to be around. Often when I’ve distracted myself from what’s weighing down my heart, it’s still bugging me but the reality isn’t uppermost in my mind so I can’t explain why I’m out of sorts, which only makes it all worse.

Let’s be brave, admit hard things weigh down our hearts and ask God to help us. We can look to His Word for passages of encouragement. Peter encourages us to cast all our cares upon Him because He cares for us. The Psalms say He is the lifter of my head; that He is a shield about me; that He is a strong tower that I may run into to.

My favorite passage?

Come to Me all who are weary and heavy 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.

Full disclosure: I’m a cry-er. God has wired me with empathy as my number one strength. I feel deeply, so when I pray I am often weeping over the cares of others. But when I am done praying, my soul is unburdened. I’ve given those cares to the Only One who can truly do anything useful. Sometimes He invites me to take an action, like write a card, send a text, give resources. Sometimes He simply gives me rest for my soul.

Can I Live a Brave Way and Complete Something?

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I have struggled with finishing what I start. ALL.MY.LIFE.

Significant adult voices called me lazy. A quitter. Undisciplined. Not a lot of encouragement there.

Perseverance has been a personal struggle; one I push toward in many areas daily. Finishing books can be a struggle. Creative projects. Housework. Conversations.

And blog series.

I began this summer a sharing a series of reflections on Matthew 11:28-30. A series that I have written and loved…but didn’t finishing sharing with you! So in effort to live in a brave way, I’m going to finish. Here goes:

Picking up in my reflections on Matthew 11:28-30

The last passage of our study is

My burden is light

I spent some counting time as I looked for ways other versions translated this passage. Did you know that Bible Gateway lists 53 versions of scripture that are translated in English? O those 53 only 13 translated this phrase differently. For fun I’m including them below:

AMPC My burden is light and easy to be borne.

ERV The load I give you to carry is light.

EXB the load I give you to carry is light.

GNT the load I will put on you is light.

ICB The load I give you to carry is not heavy.

MSG Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.

NCV the load I give you to carry is light.

NET my load is not hard to carry.

NIRV my load is light.

NLV My load is not heavy.

NLT the burden I give you is light.

WE What I give you to carry is not heavy.

WYC my charge is light

Matthew said it straight. Jesus’s Way of relationship faith instead of religious rules is a light load.

Why do we make it so hard? How has being a Christian become such a negative thing? Lots of reasons I’m sure but in the context of this verse my answer is we’ve added on things that Jesus never said were needed.

Maybe you’ve heard me say Paul was the first commentator of scripture; he unpacked what Jesus said within the context of the Hebrew scriptures and what Christ’s finished work means. Paul kept telling all the churches to live under the grace and freedom from the Law. In our passage of study, Jesus is contrasting the burden of the Law to the burden of grace. He was preparing His followers to walk alongside Him, to be in step with Him and not to work out their salvation through the rules of the Law. That work was finished on the Cross. Now we have right standing before God because of Jesus’s perfect, holy sacrifice.

My burden is light.

He carries the weight. IF we keep in step with Him we won’t feel the burden much at all. If we get out of step then we bump into the yoke and we feel and see our circumstances as if we are alone and overwhelmed.

Just like He said to Peter, Jesus says to us

Come.

We can walk above our circumstances, in step with the Holy Spirit of God and amazing things will transpire. Our attitude shifts. Our worries and fears fade. Our wounds and hurts get cared for by the only One who can truly heal us.

My burden is light.

Our job is to get in the yoke and keep in step. He gives us what we need in order to do that. He carries the weight.

Because of LOVE.

We can learn to live in a brave Way because we’re LOVED. Not shamed in our ways. Loved, forgiven and encouraged to let go and lean in. Hanging out close to Jesus is worth the effort of change.

Live Brave friends.

Are You Hanging onto Fear?

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Two days this week I came to the computer with ideas about being brave and found I had nothing to say. I was stuck. I told myself its ok come back later, but of course, later never came. I didn’t guard time to write, so time wasn’t there.

I wrestled with why I challenged myself to work through this devotional 100 Days to Brave? I questioned my sanity, my purpose, my raison d’ etre (five years of studying French peeks out on occasion)

I came to an existential crisis point. Why do I want to tell you to let go of what’s holding you back and lean into the unique creation you are? Why do I want to encourage you to be brave, to learn what that looks like in your life, to take a first step?

I want to help women connect with the passions God has placed in them for their good, for other’s good, and most of all, for God’s glory. Click To Tweet

I have been hanging onto fear. Fear that no one will care about this message. Fear that these words go no where, that writing and speaking this message is a waste of time and money. Fear that I’m not listening to God’s Word accurately and I’m doing this for my own selfish gain. Fear of resistance, of ridicule, of rejection.

Getting honest about fear is a bit scary; as I continue to learn about myself through the lens of the Enneagram, it makes more sense why I get scared. At my core, I don’t want to feel pain. I want to have fun. I avoid conflict because conflict is painful and looking at the underside of my emotions is hard work.

But God.

My two favorite words in Scripture. Best search I ever worked through; try it.

Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash

I came to my time with Him this morning without an agenda. I simply wanted to sit in His Presence and have coffee with Jesus. After I read the portions of Scripture in my Bible reading plan, I read today’s entry for Jesus Calling. 

Take time to be still in My Presence. The more hassled you feel, the more you need this sacred space of communion with Me. Breathe slowly and deeply. Relax in My holy Presence while My Face shines upon you. This is how you receive My Peace, which I always proffer to you.

I got comfortable in my chair, held my warm cup of coffee and sat quietly looking outside through the sliding glass door into our garden space. I watched the changing morning light illumine the persimmon tree in our neighbor’s yard, the orange-red fruit standing out against the green leaves. I noticed a finch search the feeder for just the right seed. What caught my attention was a hummingbird lighting on the bubbling water feature. It dipped its beak into the water hovering slightly above the water spilling over the slick turquoise orb, then all of a sudden, the hummingbird sat in the center of the bubbler and began to take a bath.

The freedom, the enthusiasm, the fearlessness all spoke to me in the hummingbird’s hesitation, then the jumping in. As I watched, these lyrics crept up to my consciousness

So let go my soul and trust in Him

And just like the shifting morning light, the awareness of my fears paled in the Light of this phrase.

So let go my soul and trust in Him

I was being invited forward. Come, Further up and Further in.

The invitation is for you too, my friend.

I see your face in my mind; your eyes rimmed with tears you’re blinking back; your brave smile trembling.

He is for you, just like He’s for me. God wants His daughters to walk in freedom; to be able to live as He has designed each of us; moment by moment learning from Him the unforced rhythms of grace.

The invitation to Come to Me isn’t a one time invitation. Jesus invites us again and again and again. You might take your eyes off of Him for a myriad of reasons; Come to Me remains the same, simple invitation. 

Learn from Me, watch how I do it. 

I’ve been hanging on to fear. I’ve been clinging to things that have weighed me down, hindering me from the life purpose God has given me. 

Right now, I’m choosing to be brave, to share my inner struggles to help you see you’re not alone in yours. The beauty is the precious invitation to Come is whispering at the edge of your conscious thought; listen and respond.

Let go and lean in.

You won’t regret it.

Perhaps you’re wondering how to get started? Or how to get back?  

Call a friend. Message me. Comment below (I read them before they get published so if you don’t want your comment published, tell me.) 

Bravely take the first step.

I leave you with this beautiful offering. Enjoy.

It is Well 

What Does it Mean to Learn from Jesus?

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If you’ve visited before, you’re used to me musing on passages of Scripture and trying to see how these sacred words apply to life today. I’ve been unpacking Matthew 11:28-30 going phrase by phrase.

This week’s phrase is the crux of discipleship.

“…learn from Me…”

What does it mean to learn from Jesus?  How does one do that exactly?

It’s simple and hard at the same time.  Remember the yoke? Getting in step with Jesus, leaning in and going along the Way that He has started for you, staying in step, getting back in step when you stumble (not IF…WHEN…)

It's guaranteed that we will get out of step with Jesus. He is mindful of our frame. Jesus doesn't want to leave you behind, or walk away from you. He has promised never to leave you or forget you, so when you get out of step He patiently… Click To Tweet

This act of learning from Jesus is a life long process and an integral part of our journey here. Don’t expect to do it perfectly. But do expect Him love and encourage you along the Way.

Out of curiosity I googled that very phrase: learn from Jesus.  As I expected, the results were fascinating and diverse.

I’m including three links for you to explore as you consider how to learn from Jesus.

10 Bible Verses About Learning From Jesus

5 Life Lessons I Learned from Jesus 

These first two are written from Christ followers. This next doesn’t name Jesus as part of the Godhead but references scripture so Truth is being told.

21 Life Lessons Even Non-Christians Can Learn From Jesus

Clearly there is a lot we can learn from Jesus.  He offers Himself to us moment by moment by the empowering Presence of God in the person of the Holy Spirit.  He does the work.

Our one job is to stay close.

 

Why Would I Wear a Yoke?!

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How is meditating and memorizing this passage from the gospel of Matthew going?  I am so appreciative of those who have encouraged us with what they have gleaned from the passage so far; praying that others of you are deepening your faith and trust in our great triune God!

This week let’s take a look at the beginning of Matthew 11:29 “Take My yoke upon you…”

Not growing up a farm girl (although I have longed for that focused lifestyle many times!) I needed to get a good picture in my mind of what a yoke is.

An interesting thing to know: when a young ox is being trained to wear the yoke and pull its weight, it is yoked with a stronger ox that actually carries the burden while the young one is learning to simply wear the yoke.

The yoke was a very common, visible word picture for those listening to Jesus. Not only was it common but it also held religious significance to those in first century Palestine.

* A yoke was a symbol of a Master-Servant relationship

* A yoke was referenced within the early teaching of the Mosaic Law. There are two yokes: the Yoke of the Kingdom of God, and the Yoke of the Commandments (Law).

How can this background information influence our understanding of what Jesus is talking about? We have to dig a little deeper…

From a rabbinical teaching about the Yoke of the Kingdom of God:

If we believe all *this to be true, then the opportunity to show our allegiance to the will of God— accepting the yoke of God’s kingdom—may be understood as a gracious gift.

If we accept the mitzvah (command) of making this God our God, not just symbolically or rhetorically, then we must also accept the rule of this Sovereign. 

  However, to be in this harness, to take upon ourselves this yoke, is not to be enslaved, but to be enabled, given the opportunity to make all life flourish. 

*(all this- is referring to the belief in God as He reveals Himself in Scripture)

From Matthew Henry’s Commentary regarding taking on Jesus’ yoke:

It requires self-denial, and exposes to difficulties, but this is abundantly repaid, even in this world, by inward peace and joy. It is a yoke that is lined with love. So powerful are the assistances he gives us, so suitable the encouragements, and so strong the consolations to be found in the way of duty, that we may truly say, it is a yoke of pleasantness. 

So we are back to Jesus’ telling us to “take My yoke upon you…”

Am I willing to be in a harness with Jesus? To walk with Him at His pace, doing the things He has in mind for the day? What does this cost me? What do I gain? Click To Tweet

Are you?

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What is Filling Your Thoughts?

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How is the memorizing going so far? 3 short phrases that can be fit together now:

Come to Me, all who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.

I’ve spent some time investigating rest, learning about it and, dare I say, practicing it. I’ve learned to appreciate the gift that rest is. I’m not talking about a weekend away from the routine; that’s more like a retreat. This verse is meant to take place in the everyday busy-ness we encounter.

There isn’t a mystery of interpretation to this phrase. But it is pregnant with meaning.

The word I is a personal pronoun attributed to the speaker, who in this case is Jesus.

Rest means what it says. Rest. Ceasing from activity.

Photo by Marko Kovic on Unsplash

 

Jesus will give you rest.  He sees how busy we are. He knows how physically tired we can get. He knows what it feels like to be thirsty, in pain, lonely; whatever you are dealing with today. He knows.

And He will give you rest.

How you might ask? Is He going to come babysit? Or take care of my ailing parent? Or, or, or,…

You know by now that I am a context girl so stopping at this phrase without putting it together within the context is hard. I don’t want to run ahead to the weeks to come but I do want you to know, to become aware of, the comfort this sentence can bring.

Come to Me, all who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest.

It is an invitation.

If we slow our racing thoughts; if we slow our frantic pace; if we actively pause and look in His direction, He is waiting in the wings of our lives to give us that comfort & rest. A sigh. A deep breath. A slow exhale. Click To Tweet

Maybe you need to hide in the bathroom to make that rest happen. Perhaps it’s simply a pause of thought and action even as you read this post.

Jesus knows. He sees. He cares. He comforts.

He gives rest.

Let us know how you practice pushing the pause button in your days. We all need encouragement to find ways of practicing. Using that word is a reminder that we are all learners.

I highly recommend pushing pause daily.

Are You Weary? Burned out? The #1 Way to find Relief

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I hope you’ve been pondering the invitation Jesus spoke that is recorded in the gospel of Matthew chapter 11 verses 28-30. Looking back: Come to Me…

This week’s phrase is “…all who are weary and burdened…”

The invitation is comprehensive. ALL. There are none who are excluded from this invitation to Come. Every.Single. Human. Being. Throughout. History and in the Present and Yet to be born. ALL.

This reminds me of a concert verse ( a verse that speaks of this topic in another way, enriching the meaning and reinforcing the message)

John 3:16 “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.”

The concert term? Whoever. It’s another way of saying ALL.

(on a side note: a search for the word ALL in scripture is time consuming but has had a lasting impact on my understanding of the character of God)

Weary and burdened may seem redundant but they actually emphasize different aspects of tired and weighed down.  Weary is a present tense verb, which can also be translated exhausted. Exhausted with trying hard to live up to expectations. Exhausted with trying to solve problems, do good work, be the best version of ourselves…all in our own strength.

Photo by Yolanda Leyva on Unsplash

 

Anyone?

Burdened in this context is the word for putting something on the back of an animal to carry the weight. Jesus was speaking specifically about the religious rules that the Pharisees had added to the Law; these burdens were unnecessary to say the least. Here Jesus is telling the people He sees they’re exhausted from trying to deal with all the brokenness in their lives and He sees the unnecessary performance rules put on top of them by the Pharisees.

What about us today? Where are you weary of the try-hard-life?  What unnecessary burdens from a broken understanding of Christianity do you bear?

Jesus sees. He cares.

Come to Me All who are weary and burdened…

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Monday Motivation: Meditation to Action

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It’s Monday. I’m facing it down and showing up. I’m also choosing to find motivation from my meditations. In my mind this is where the rubber meets the road, where my feet walk out what my heart is leaning toward. My attitude and action are under my control. For a recovering Control Freak that is an important awareness. I do have control over some things!!

Our attitudes are our choices.

Photo by Kyle Glenn on Unsplash

We can choose how we respond to any given situation. We have control of our response. We also have control of our thoughts. You may struggle with “monkey mind” like I do as an Enneagram 7 but even our thoughts can be captured and wrangled into submission. In coaching we talk a lot about mindset. It’s not touchy-feely, it’s neurobiology-a field of science that studies how our brain works, learns, how our feelings impact brain function, and so much more!

You don’t have to stay stuck in a rut in your thought pattern. You have the power to choose.

Let’s use a fairly common internal dialogue as an example: You make a mistake with someone’s name. In your thoughts you tell yourself a story about your memory. It’s not a nice way to talk to anyone, but you call yourself a name and pair it with how your memory works. You have just created a neuropathway about your ability to remember names.

Guess what? Your brain looks for connections to string thoughts together in order for the brain to work more efficiently. The pathway gets strengthened every time you tell yourself that story. This is how your thoughts get formed and you get in a rut of stinking thinking.

How can you change that pattern?

Step 1: Pay Attention. Listen to the way you think about a circumstance.

Step 2: Stop it!

Photo by Luke van Zyl on Unsplash

The moment you recognize you’ve had a repeat thought that you want to change, you stop, acknowledge the negative thought as the “old way” of thinking.

Step 3: Immediately tell yourself the new Truth you want to replace the old thought with. It’s helpful to actually say it aloud if your circumstances allow.

Ancient wisdom tells us much about our thoughts. We can be transformed by the renewing of our minds. We can let our minds dwell or camp on Truth not on lies.

I’ve been sharing my meditations on Matthew 11:28-30 on Wednesdays this month. You can read the past ones here and here. There is ongoing benefit to meditation with your brain function too, but I won’t overload you with neuroscience! Just know that there are a multitude of benefits for meditating on God’s Word, one of them being transformation.

As a coach, I’m all about transformation. I’m pretty sure that’s aligned with God’s heart for us since we’re called to grow in Christ-likeness. Learning how to let go of thoughts and habits that keep us from being all we can be, learning to lean in with Jesus is worthy life work.

Let’s make meditation transfer to action. If you have questions about what the process of coaching with me is like, let me know. I’m happy to address your questions here or any of the other places you can find me: online or on the phone!

Learn a new Way. Take a step forward. Reach out for help & accountability.

 

What’s in it for You? Come to Me

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Last week I shared the benefit I gained from meditating on a passage of scripture. Being an Enneagram core type 7 I thought it would be fun to encourage you to practice meditating on the same passage from Matthew 11. If you missed last week’s post you can read it here.

Wondering what version you found most resonant for your study of Matthew 11:28-30?

This week we begin looking at the passage one phrase at a time.  I promise you this: if all you do is meditate on each phrase for a week, allowing the words to weave through your thoughts and permeate your mind, the passage will be memorized and taken to heart in a new way without a lot of trying to memorize!

“Come to Me”

This can be read with an inflection of a parent to a wandering child: Come to Me!

In this way it takes on a command. An imperative telling you what to do.

In fact, the Greek word for come in this case is deute and is just that, a command. But if we only look at that word definition and then say Jesus is demanding our attention, our obedience, then we are taking the word away from the intent and limiting the full impact of the passage.

I have heard teaching that has done just that. I will tell you that way of seeing is incomplete and taken out of context.  Let’s go deeper.

“Come to Me.”

In it’s full contextual setting, this phrase is an invitation.

An invitation to be. To be with. To be with Jesus.

*sigh*

A place of relief. As we will continue to see, a place of rest.

This links in my head with several other passages of Scripture that I’ll just give references to:

Ps 23; Ps. 46:10; Ps. 91:1-2; Isaiah 26:3 just to name a few.

This phrase is spoken by the Good Shepherd who sees His weary, burdened flock and feels compassion for them.

Jesus, walking from the upper room after the last supper up toward the garden of Gethsemane pauses, looks back over Jerusalem and says

“Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were not willing.”

Jesus gave an invitation to come to Him. He was rejected.

Where do you find yourself today with that invitation? 

For those without the Savior, it is equivalent to a call to believe in Him.

For those who are already believers, it is a call to follow Him as a committed disciple; it is a call to completely turn their lives over to Him.

Here’s some more digging deeper:

“To” is the preposition pros, a preposition expressing close proximity and intimate fellowship. It is used of the fellowship of the Son with the Father.

We have here a call to an intimacy of fellowship.

“Me” is a personal pronoun, me. Note that the Pharisees basically said, “do as we say, obey our system,” but the Lord Jesus said, “come to me.”

What’s His Point?

This is one of the great concepts of Christianity that must be taught and grasped. Christianity is a relationship with the person of Jesus Christ. This is not a call to a program, nor a system of religion, nor to a church, and certainly… Click To Tweet

Too often disciple-makers end up cloning subordinates rather than helping people develop Christ-likeness. They draw people to themselves and reproduce graven images. In essence, they say, “agree with me, think like me, dress like me, teach like I do, act like me, and you will have success, or have a successful ministry.”

While God uses churches, people, and theological systems, Christianity is intended to be an intimate, personal relationship with the Lord Jesus.

Lots to ponder in three words.

cleardot.pngAs you ponder, I’d love to hear your musings. Perhaps this stirs up questions you’d like to have a safe space to explore. Any comment or question you post can remain private if you let me know. Your comments here don’t automatically post; I read them first!

Word on Wednesdays

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A couple of years ago, I wanted to learn to meditate and memorize three verses. I’ve memorized a lot of verses over the years but I hadn’t dug in, slowed down and let them marinate into my soul. This was a new practice for me.

“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.”

This is the passage. Three verses packed with meaning beyond our English translation. Three verses that as I began to sit with them I realized I wanted to slow down even more and consider them phrase by phrase, not all of the three verses together.

What I learned from doing this slow, meditative practice has reframed my relationship with Jesus. That is saying something. I loved this experience so much I want to share it with you on Wednesdays for the rest of the summer. Beyond this month of Summer Fun!

This is another Way we can practice how to Show Up every day.

My desire is to encourage you to meditate on these words, phrase by phrase, allowing them time to get into your bones. Once there, they will transform you from the inside out.

It’s not magic but it is Mysterious; how does a passage of the Bible have the power to change the way we think and act? I wish I had the full answer. I do know there are countless examples of scripture transforming minds & hearts but perhaps as many of scripture being used out of context as a weapon of hatred and control rather than being wielded with grace. My question becomes “what was the context and its intent?”

As we study this passage we’ll get to see photos of the region where He was when He spoke these words, hear more about His audience and what their lives were like, and look for what this means for us as Christ followers in 2018.  I hope each of you will reply with questions or additional things you learn as you study on your own; we are all in this together! Please share. You don’t know how your question or learning may benefit someone.

For this week I’d like to encourage you to do a comparison reading of this passage in several translations. As you read, ask the Holy Spirit to bring these words to life in your mind and heart.  Choose one version that resonates as you read it and then begin to memorize the passage in that version. You have the rest of the summer!

Follow Me…

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