Yoke (noun): a wooden bar or frame by which two draft animals (such as oxen) are joined at the heads or necks for working together
I recently watched the movie “I Can Only Imagine” based on the true story of Mercy Me’s lead singer Bart Millard. The movie title comes from the song that emerged from Bart’s writings about his dad, their relationship, and the transformation he witnessed in his father as he became a Christ follower. As Bart flipped through his journal one day, he recognized that the words “I can only imagine” were written everywhere – in little scribbles in the margin, on a page by itself, in the midst of other doodles. The words came alive in Bart’s musical mind and a song was born (in fact, it’s the “best-selling Christian song of all time”).
Watching the lyrics jump out of Bart’s diary during the movie inspired me to scan my own from the past year. I identified a repetitive word, and this blog post was born!
The scriptural inspiration for my recurring meditation on the word YOKE comes from Jesus’ invitation found in the Gospel of Matthew:
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30
These verses are well-known by most Christians or Bible readers. Many people are drawn to the words about finding rest. It’s interesting for Jesus to use imagery about harnessing working animals together as a metaphor to finding rest. But the more I’ve studied these words, and the more I’ve applied them to my life, the more I understand how being “yoked” to Christ is the most important decision I face every day.
Would you journey through my “yoke” musings with me?
November 2018: Take His yoke. This is a daily choice, to take his yoke. The goal isn’t to take the yoke, learn, and then say, “I don’t need this anymore, I got this.” No. Take His yoke every day. His Will is my will. His Way is my way. We are in this together for all time. Lord, I need you. Every hour of every day, I need you.
December 2018: Studying the words of Galatians 5:1 today. It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery. The “yoke of slavery” is being guided by the sinful nature. It is the opposite of being “yoked to Christ” as He offers in Matthew 11. I have the power through the Holy Spirit to stand firm, to control my mind and my choices, to stay the course of freedom. The same power that rose Christ from the dead lives in me! God grants me access to His power, a Spirit of strength and courage – I will take hold of it! I will throw off the yoke of sin and live in the freedom found in Christ.
February 2019: What great inspiration in Proverbs 3:26 ~ For the Lord will be at your side and will keep your foot from being snared. ~ It’s the familiar concept of being yoked to Christ, my Savior and Redeemer. Staying close to Him, feeding on His Word daily, following His lead…this is the path to healthy living and abundant life!
March 2019: Inspired by the words from Colossians 1:9 today, my heart yearns to be “filled with the knowledge of His will”. I am confident that the discipline of surrendering daily, of taking on His yoke each morning, is the key to discerning His will. Only through being yoked to Jesus can I discern His will and then yield to it. His yoke provides the answers to my questions like… How to build healthy relationships, how to shine His Light in the world, how to love others well, how to handle conflict, how to make good financial or parental decisions, and many more. Discerning His will requires training – and taking on His yoke each day is just like putting on the training wheels. I need only remember to put it on each day, and I will stay on the path that leads to life.
June 2019: When I desire His will above all else, life becomes much less threatening. I do not wish to miss the Joy of His Presence by carrying the weight of the world on my shoulders. Take His yoke upon me and learn from Him! A decision I make each day… Jesus, I yoke myself to you!
September 2019: The closer I live to Christ, with Christ, for Christ, the more I become the one I was designed to be – I become more fully myself. In union with Christ – yoked to Him – I am complete. I have no emptiness to comfort, no void to fill.
October 2019: God is my Pilot, and I gladly surrender the keys to Him each day. Christ is my Savior, and I happily yoke myself to Him each day. I need to remain intimately connected to Christ and remind myself that He is the way. When I’m exerting self-will, I will feel the chafe (aka “struggle”) of the yoke. But when I’m following His Will, the burden will be light and easy. Happy, joyous and free is the result of taking on the yoke of Christ!
When I focus on His Presence beside me, I can face the day with confidence. I am plugged in, yoked, surrendered to my Lord and Savior.
His way is tailor-made for me, is best for me, and leads me to be my best.
“Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.” Matthew 11:28-30 The Message