Finding Calm in Your Chaos

Friend, perhaps you are looking for some calm in your chaos today. Maybe, you feel panic when you desire peace. I get it! I, too, crave calm in the chaos. Can I remind you and me of a peaceful passage with a promise? This helps me when I am living in some crazy!

Matthew 11:28-30 reads, "Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” He invites us to bring our burdens to Him and trade them for His peace and rest. He gives calm when we are facing chaos.

First, note Jesus says, "Come to me." It is a personal invitation to come and be with Him. This call is different from Christ's invitation to some of His disciples. When he called Peter and Andrew in Matthew 4:19, He said, "Come after me. Follow me - and I will make you fishers of men." But in Matthew 11, Jesus is saying, Come to me - Rest your head on my shoulder. Come, for you have nothing to prove. Just come. “Come, to me and cast your anxieties on me, for I care for you.” ( 1 Peter 5:7).

Just come. “Come, to me and cast your anxieties on me, for I care for you.” ( 1 Peter 5:7).

He invites those who are weary and tired. "ALL - who labor and are heavy-laden." He is reaching out to the burnt-out and burdened. He promises rest for your souls. As we come, He promises to "give you rest." We find spiritual rest and renewal in Him. David said it best in Pslams, "For God alone, O my soul, wait in silence, for my hope is from Him. He only is my rock and my salvation, my fortress; I shall not be shaken. On God rests my salvation and my glory; my mighty rock, my refuge is God. (Psalm 62:5-7)

Our rest and peace are found in being with Him. When we are with Him in his presence, living in His will and his way, we have rest for our souls. It is a rest different from the world of distractions. It is peace from the numbness of a drink or drugs. The Lord gives rest to our souls. He gives refreshment through the word. He provides rest. The word REST in Greek is anapauó, meaning to give rest, give intermission from labor, refresh." This rest only comes from our heavenly Father.

Second, note Christ says to “Take my yoke upon you.” The word yoke in Greek is zygós, meaning a wooden bar placed over the neck of a pair of animals so they can pull together; (figuratively) what unites (joins) two people to move (work) together as one." Friend, we were never meant to do this life alone. As we come to the Lord, place His yoke around our neck, and pair ourselves with Him, we will learn from Him. Jesus tells us to watch his example and learn from his life. "And learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light." He is inviting us to do life with Him by our side. We take His yoke, walk with Him, learn from Him and work with Him. As we do, we see His example and begin to act like Him. We begin to walk in rhythm with Him. We learn as our eyes on fixed on our heavenly Father. Like oxen who would have been paired to stronger oxen with the yoke, we are paired with the all-powerful teacher. We were never meant to do this life alone.

Take His yoke, for we were never meant to do this life alone.

Rick Warren says it this way, "He uses three verbs in this verse: come, learn, and take. Jesus says, “Come to me. Team up with me. Then, learn how I do it. Take on a lighter load. This is going to reduce your stress. This is going to make it easier for you to navigate.” When you’re yoked with Christ, you move together with him. You move in the same direction and at the same speed. And you move in the right direction and at the right speed."

For the overwhelmed female, this means walking as a mirror of the way Christ walked. It is pairing yourself beside Him to live as a reflection of Him. It is forgiving those who have hurt you. It means replacing a worrisome panic with a warrior’s prayer. This is to “Be still; God will fight your battles for you.” It is remembering that it is not about you or me, sweetheart; it is all about Him. It is resting in His grace and soaking in the moments with His word. Take His yoke. We were never meant to do this life alone.

Third, note He will give you the rest you crave. "And He will give you rest." The psalmist declares: Truly my soul finds rest in God; my salvation comes from him (Ps. 62:1 NIV). Psalm 116:7: Return, O my soul, to your rest; for the LORD has dealt bountifully with you. Come to HIme. Take His yoke for He gives the rest you crave.

He gives the rest you crave.

I am not sure where you need a little calm today, but I promise you can come to your Abba Father and find rest for your soul. Just come. Take his yoke and find the rest you crave. "Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”