God Gives Rest

“Come unto Me, all ye who are weary and 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.” -Matt. 11:28-30

Last week I studied the book of Philippians. As I came across verses that I had underlined from years past in my much-used and ‘dog-eared” favorite Bible, I wrote something about these verses in “My Daily Devotional Journal.”

This week, as I still deal with my beloved husband’s very serious illness, and draw closer to time of our earthly parting, I am taking much succor from passages in my Bible that have been marked, underlined, sometimes marginal notes telling who preached on the verses, where, when and what the subject and outline was. I thank God for such a rich store of comfort as I relive even sermons my husband himself preached in years past.

I began reading Ruth Graham’s (the daughter of Billy and Ruth Bell Graham) book this week Fear Not Tomorrow, God Is Already There. That motto had hung above Ruth Bell Graham’s desk for as long as the younger Ruth could remember. When daughter Ruth was going through a great crisis in her own life, her mother mailed the motto as a gift to her hurting daughter. Ruth began to reflect on the truth of God being in all of our tomorrows, regardless of where we are in our life journey. She has written a whole book on how God is already ahead of us in the future, preparing what is best for His children. He never leaves us or forsakes us. He is as close as breathing, ready to provide rest and help in whatever circumstance. When my body is tired from long hours of caregiving, God gives me uninterrupted sleep and rest. When I need a word of encouragement, someone calls, sends a card, reassures me of their prayers, tells me they love Grover and me. Just like the Scripture promises, “His yoke is easy and His burden is light!”

How grateful I am that the verses from my past Bible studies are now nudging me on a daily basis to re-establish God’s unfailing promises and to give me rest and assurance. How faithful is our Almighty God! In the words of the Laurie Klein chorus, I sing: “I love you Lord, and I lift my voice to worship You, O my soul, rejoice! Take joy, my King, in what You hear: may it be a sweet, sweet sound in Your ear.” Selah!

c Ethelene Dyer Jones; Thursday, January 21, 2010