Yoked to Jesus

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“Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, 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 light.” †  Mathew 11: 28-30  What is the labour and burden that Jesus is asking me to deal with? Perhaps I have to let go of the compulsive burden (or is it a sort of entitlement?) that my spouse and children should choose a spiritual path that I know to be right. Jesus accompanied Judas Iscariot to the very end but never deprived him of his freedom to choose his own destiny. Jesus on the other hand, uninterrupted by Judas's choice to reject him, continues to accomplish his mission. He does become a victim of Judas's betrayal but he seldom takes on the victim's identity. In divine wisdom, Jesus chooses to die in our place (and that of Judas) in a redeeming act of love. Rather than being compelled to fix those whom God has entrusted to my headship by m

As mother jumps off the cliff

Mother Hen along with it's many chicks move on as the young ones crisscross and sometime mount on her.  A chick that stayed behind spotting something new on the ground catches up with the rest.

An unfriendly noise! A warning call from the mother follows. She lifts her wings and the chicks go hiding under it. Frightened chicks keeps total mum. Mother crouches over the young ones. The chicks hear their mother's heart beat and feel the warmth of her body. While the chicks are lost in this extreme comfort and well being, the mother gets up and walks off.  The chicks fall over, afraid being unprotected, look up to see only the vast expanse of the empty sky. They then find their mother who is already at a distance ahead of them. They run to her  

The chicks peck on all things mother scavenge for them and move on. 

They now come to the edge of the plain beyond which is a big ditch. The mother Hen waits for no one, jumps off with its wings spread and lands few feet below and continues to walk. Chicks in complete disarray come to the edge and return, undecided whether to try what mother just did. One chick falls off the edge in the thick of this confusion and another musters courage and jumps flapping it's little wings violently. The chick hits the ground and flips over. One after the other, chicks take courage and jumps.

They run to eat the sumptuous meal mother found for them under the dry leaves.

God’s presence comforts us. We feel totally free and safe with in His purview. An unfriendly screech proceeds a call from God to hide under His wings. We feel God so much closely. 

But well within this euphoria and utmost comfort, comes totally unexpected abandonment and we don't understand why. The whys are not answered but we move on.

Yet again, left to ourselves at the cliff, we struggle to determine whether to stay where we are, go back to where we came from or take the plunge. Mustering in courage, trusting in Him completely we take the plunge and land safely just as He did. God waits right there to reward us 

Painful, truly unjust and seemingly pointless events in our lives continue until Christ’s character is formed in us. Every human heart has deeply embedded in it, the desire to reunite to Christ. 

He made us for himself and our hearts will never know rest until it finds it in Him says St. Augustine.

This state of union we all desire cannot be achieved by strong will or hard discipline but by learning to accept our human weaknesses, accepting the tests (humiliation) that God permits in our lives, even from people very close to us.  We progress surrendering continuously our human nature, allowing Him to refine us, as would sandpaper on rough wood, until Christ forms in us. 

Comments

  1. Thanks Jacob. Truly touching and God knows I needed this knowledge at this point in time. We have an amazing God who knows what we need even when we do not feel His presence near.

    Adolf

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  2. well said. that is something like the 38 yrs of my life gone by. thats what i did. i guess everyone does it.

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