Rest for the soul

Waiting for Our Souls to Catch Up

There is a story told in the film Beyond the Clouds, of an archaeologist who hired some Inca tribesmen to lead him to a site high in the mountains. After they had been trekking for some time the men just stopped and insisted they would go no further. The archaeologist grew impatient and then angry, but no matter how much he cajoled them they would not go any further. Suddenly, without warning, the tribesmen changed their attitude, picked up the gear and set off once more. When the bewildered archaeologist asked why they had stopped and had refused to move for so long,they answered that they had been moving too fast and had to wait for their souls to catch up.

Jesus spoke to restless people, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest.  Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.”

It was a mixed group who heard these words.Religious leaders, close disciples and the crowd who gathered easily to hear some new teaching or see a miracle! The common thread that united them all was that they were weary carrying the personal baggage of sinful behaviour. They needed rest!

We usually associate resting with doing nothing, zoning out, but it is clear that the rest that Jesus talked about was spiritual. To gain freedom from this burden meant following Christ, an honest ownership of personal spiritual exhaustion and a trust that Jesus alone can take away the burden and grant forgiveness. This rest includes being yoked together with Christ; accepting his teaching and knowing that his truth will set us free.

“This is what the Lord says: Stop at the crossroads and look around. Ask for the old, godly way, and walk in it. Travel its path, and you will find rest for your souls” Jeremiah 6:15-17

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