Are You Yolked to Christ?

April 13, 2023

If you’re living life on overload, here’s a possible reason why:

You’re trying to control too much. You think it all depends on you.

But, Jesus has a different plan for you: “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 11:29-30 NIV).

A

yoke is a single piece of wood that brings two farm animals together,

so they can share the burden of a load. With a yoke, you team up two or

more animals, so the load is shared; it’s lightened. A yoke makes life

easier on the animal, not harder.

When

Jesus tells you to take his yoke upon yourself, it’s like he’s saying,

“I never meant for you to carry all your problems by yourself. Let me

help you! Team up with me, partner with me, and I will help you carry

the load.

If you feel stressed right now, it means you are not yoked to Jesus Christ.

Stress is a warning sign. It tells you that you’re trying to control things and carry too much on your own.

Every

time you get disconnected from Jesus, the stress goes up in your life.

You may even be a follower of Jesus Christ, but if you’re feeling

overloaded at this moment, you are not yoked up to him.

Jesus told his disciples that they must “abide” (or remain) in him,

daily. He is the vine. He is the source of our peace. Are you abiding in

Christ every day? Are you connected to the vine?

Every time you get reconnected and yoked up, Jesus helps you pull the load. And your stress goes down.

It’s

tempting to think that the antidote to stress is escape. But the

problem is that stress is in your mind—so you take it with you wherever

you go. You can be just as stressed lying on a white sandy beach as you

are right in the middle of your problems at home. 

The answer is to give up control, to accept the yoke of Jesus. And when you do, God will give you peace.