Matthew 11:28 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.”
During the war years in Burundi, it was a very stressful environment. There was the extreme poverty, the listening to bombs fall, the death threats, and more. It was in that context that my Great Aunt, who had also worked out here, sent me a note which read:
Look around, and be distressed;
Look within, and be depressed;
Look to Jesus, and be at rest.
There is so much to look around at and get distressed by; and then if you spend too much time looking within yourself at your own issues, you can easily end up depressed; but if we keep our eyes fixed on Jesus, however weary and burdened we are, he says: “I will give you rest.”
How do you picture rest? Two painters were trying to depict their understanding of rest. The first took a beautiful picturesque lake scene, surrounded by elegant mountains. The second artist splashed his canvas with a thundering waterfall, in the middle of which a defiant birch tree reached upwards, bending over the foam. On one branch sat a robin, covered in spray, observing the cascading water either side and beneath it. The first artist’s work more accurately depicted stagnation; the latter’s work more authentically portrayed rest.
We can take brief escapes on holidays to peaceful lakes and mountains, but our lives feel much more like the thundering waterfall. We need to find a branch somehow, somewhere, in the midst of the stress and frenetic speed of life to be still, to centre ourselves in Jesus, to breathe deeply, and commune with him. Otherwise his voice will get drowned out, and we’ll miss what he’s saying. And then at the end of each day, let’s follow Victor Hugo’s advice: “When you have accomplished your daily task, go to sleep in peace; God is awake!”
Lord, teach me to look to you and find rest. Amen!
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