The message in the gospel of Mathew 11:28-30
I never really thought much about the message in the gospel of Mathew 11:28-30 until a professor had a chat with us. He said that Jesus Christ never promised that we shall have no load or burden but he only promised to make it lighter for us to carry. Here is the bible verse: “come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”
The professor went ahead to tell us a story in which someone complained to Christ and said, “My cross is so heavy for me to carry. Please Lord, give me a lighter cross so that I may be able to carry it.” Then Christ said to him, “lay down your cross among the crosses and look for a lighter cross which you can carry.” The man laid down his cross and searched for a lighter cross amidst of many crosses. He tried to lift the crosses he found but each time he tried he realized that there are heavier than the cross he came with so he could not carry any of it. He continued to search until he found one which he thought was lighter than the former so he carried it and said, “Lord thank you. I can carry this because it is easier than all that I found.” He was about to leave when Christ called him back and said, “look at the cross you carried.” That was when the man looked at the cross and realized that it was same cross he came with. Then Christ said to him, “I did not give you a cross which you could not carry.”
The story confirmed that God never promised us a life free of struggles and challenges but he promised that he shall always make away for us even when we thought he was not there with us because we did all we can to no avail. He said that he shall never forsake us. However, only those that put their trust in God shall find rest at such time for they shall always remember the promises of God. Jesus said that his burden is light and his yoke is easy. He also promised rest to those that would come to him. Therefore, it follows that a rest of mind is not necessarily a state of no problems but a condition in which we are able to always put our trust in God.
Many people think their situation is worst than that of others so they ask God why? But they never knew that they should be thankful no matter the situation they may find themselves because someone is fighting a hard battle than theirs. This is because the heavier crosses mentioned in the story above were made for some people to carry. It is for this reason that some people claim that everything happen for a reason. I was once in a situation where I had to ask similar questions then I learned the secret because of a truth everything happen for a reason and we can be the reason especially when we fail to carry our cross cheerfully to a destination where we can really find rest.
