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

The invisible rope of faith

I often prayed, Lord please let me experience pleasure that is greater than the pleasure of sin that I might not succumb to what is temporary and detrimental, but seek to satisfy me with what is supremely pleasurable and eternal. I now understand the folly and the impudence of that statement (prayer) which denied my own strength in Christ and challenged the nature of God itself.

Imagine ourselves to be in a deep pit filled with dung and we are wading in it; some deep inside, some neck deep, some barely avoiding the top layer holding on to some twig by the wall, others attempting climb up in vain, yet few others strenuously yet joyfully climbing up, holding on to an invisible rope (of faith) as though with some special power (grace). This invisible rope, yet visible though the eye of faith, is the path of salvation Christ lowered for us into the pit after breaking open the door which sealed the pit and separated us from what was Divine. The light has come into the pit and we can see heaven atop. For those who look up, there is hope and assistance to climb upward and free themselves into eternal freedom, unlimited pleasure and imperishable joy, uniting themselves with the Divine. But for those who held their head fixed to the dung and the walls, there is utter hopelessness and fear and total discontentment. They are voraciously greedy to fill their emptiness with what they do not have and to feel quenched, causing great imbalance and chaos making life in the pit (life of earth) as heinous as in hell.

Barely avoiding the dung (sin) if I propose to the Lord, I will cease to relish the unpleasant dwelling if only you let me experience the beautiful freedom that is beyond this pit, expecting God to take me on a site seeing trip to show me what is really there before I take a decision to climb, my hope is in vain. It only displays my pride, arrogance and impudence denying God and His very nature. For when I make this conditional proposal, I have already resolved not to avoid the pleasure of sin, but wishing that God would manipulate my choice, and be less than perfect love.

When I fix my eyes to the heavens and persevere in my climb in holiness by the power of grace, I'm drawn closer to Him little by little until the day I launch into eternal bliss. You and I must avoid sin not because of its horrible consequences and the hell eternal, but because we find our well- being and true fulfillment in the love of God.

Lord pardon my ignorance. Help me act on the grace, the very light I see today when I look up and climb the invisible rope believing in you, for you said: "I'm the way, the truth and life" [John 14:6]

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