Matthew 11:28-30 states, "Come to Me, all you who weary 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."

Does this promise from Matthew resonate with you? This passage may appear at first to be warm and fuzzy. But as we unpack it, some of you might not like what this passage states.

Matthew 11:28-30 states, "Come to Me, all you who weary 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."

Does this promise from Matthew resonate with you? This passage may appear at first to be warm and fuzzy. But as we unpack it, some of you might not like what this passage states.

In the ancient Hebrew culture, names encompassed the character of the person. When God introduced Himself by a new name, He revealed another part of His character. That is why His names are significant. It’s why Psalm 103:1 encourages us to “bless His holy name.” When we bless His name, we bless all that He is.

As he who runs a race never lets up until past the finish line, so are those who have heaven in mind. We must still be pressing forward to “our calling” with a holy desire and hope. The more fit we grow for heaven, the faster we must press towards it.

When we experience anxiety many of us cling to the words of Jesus in John 14:27: "My Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives, do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." In this study we will not only discover what Jesus actually meant by that statement, which was given to his disciples at the Upper Room on the eve of His own trial and crucifixion, but we will also determine how these words are to be appropriately applied.

When we experience anxiety many of us cling to the words of Jesus in John 14:27: "My Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives, do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." In this study we will not only discover what Jesus actually meant by that statement, which was given to his disciples at the Upper Room on the eve of His own trial and crucifixion, but we will also determine how these words are to be appropriately applied.

In the dark of night, a man named Jacob was left alone with God. He came from a family of faith and dysfunction. He carried stories of a faithful God and memories of a father who’d overtly favored his twin brother. Jacob lived a life of deceit and despair, often mingled with an undertone of holy that might leave the audiences of Genesis a little perplexed. But here, on this night, all his scheming and all his toiling gave way to darkness. “Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him until daybreak” (Genesis 32:24). The man was God Himself.

In the dark of night, a man named Jacob was left alone with God. He came from a family of faith and dysfunction. He carried stories of a faithful God and memories of a father who’d overtly favored his twin brother. Jacob lived a life of deceit and despair, often mingled with an undertone of holy that might leave the audiences of Genesis a little perplexed. But here, on this night, all his scheming and all his toiling gave way to darkness. “Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him until daybreak” (Genesis 32:24). The man was God Himself.

In some of the darkest times in our lives, when we’ve been hit really hard, perhaps repeatedly by some emotional or physical event that was either sudden or seasonal, we find ourselves exhausted & empty. We tried to recover but there are just too many reminders. The wounds seem never to heal & when we think they have healed, “something happens” & they break open once again.

For some of us, the wounds could be a marriage that did not live up to expectations. You always find yourself at odds with the person you committed yourself to love. Or perhaps the wounds involve your children. You watch them make terrible & costly decisions & with each decision made, you feel the dagger twist once again deep in your heart. For others it is a dream you know will never be realized. You used to dream, but like the clouds you watched while lying on the grass as a kid, your dreams have moved beyond your range of vision. Then there are those of who feel the great loss when the people we love & know are snatched from us.

What should we do as believers in the Lord Jesus Christ when we feel the blows hit us hard & perhaps repeatedly? Do we give up, fall into the black swamp of despair, & allow ourselves seek to the bottom? How are we to go on after the sudden white squall or monsoon season devastated us? Perhaps you have found solace in the popular passage in Isaiah: 40:31:

“But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.”

How is this passage applicable to us when we have been hit hard by loss, pain, turmoil, & trauma? In order to appropriately understand and apply this popular promise, we must step back into time and examine the context in which it was given.

In some of the darkest times in our lives, when we’ve been hit really hard, perhaps repeatedly by some emotional or physical event that was either sudden or seasonal, we find ourselves exhausted & empty. We tried to recover but there are just too many reminders. The wounds seem never to heal & when we think they have healed, “something happens” & they break open once again.

For some of us, the wounds could be a marriage that did not live up to expectations. You always find yourself at odds with the person you committed yourself to love. Or perhaps the wounds involve your children. You watch them make terrible & costly decisions & with each decision made, you feel the dagger twist once again deep in your heart. For others it is a dream you know will never be realized. You used to dream, but like the clouds you watched while lying on the grass as a kid, your dreams have moved beyond your range of vision. Then there are those of who feel the great loss when the people we love & know are snatched from us.

What should we do as believers in the Lord Jesus Christ when we feel the blows hit us hard & perhaps repeatedly? Do we give up, fall into the black swamp of despair, & allow ourselves seek to the bottom? How are we to go on after the sudden white squall or monsoon season devastated us? Perhaps you have found solace in the popular passage in Isaiah: 40:31:

“But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.”

How is this passage applicable to us when we have been hit hard by loss, pain, turmoil, & trauma? In order to appropriately understand and apply this popular promise, we must step back into time and examine the context in which it was given.