Pastor Chuck’s Corner: All Means All
“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. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”
All means all. In our time, where inclusivity has rightly taken a place in the forefront of our consciousness, it is good to consider the word “all”. All in this case can be a blanket covering for any who have, through ignorance or plain oversight, never had the opportunity to be part of “all”. May God continue to soften our hearts toward the many who still struggle to gain equal footing within all.
In this season of Lent, I have chosen the above scripture as part of our Wednesday Evening services with the intention of looking at the word all as it applies to each one of us. My goal is that we can together better understand the blessing that comes from the invitation to be a member of the “all.”
In very plain language, the Lord Jesus extends an invitation: to all who are weary and burdened. I have no doubt that at some point in each of our lives, we have felt the weight of these things.
We can be weary and burdened by so many things: the obligations of work, of family, of our health, of care for those older, etc. The list goes on, and it can vary for each one of us.
Thanks be to God; the invitation is just as personal! The Lord knows us. He knows the struggles our daily lives can bring to us. Because he came to live as one of us, he knows physical, emotional and mental pain. He knows all. He cares for all. He loves all.
And as the above scripture makes clear, he offers us rest. Not the rest of living on easy street, but rather the more secure knowledge of the Lord’s eternal presence, and the comfort of knowing we serve a God who truly understands who we are.
Though the rest offered is unconditional, we do have a responsibility in seeing it become a reality in our life: We must take what Jesus offers. By this I mean we must first admit our need for the blessing of rest, and then allow it into our hearts and minds.
In a figurative sense, we need to set down some of the things that burden us, so that our hands are free to grasp the gift of rest Jesus offers, to all.
In this season of Lent, I invite us all to set down, let go of, or release things that make us overly weary and burdened. As we prepare for the unmatched wonder of Resurrection Sunday, may we truly take of the Lord’s rest as we go; for it is available to all.
Be Blessed & Be a Blessing,
Pastor Chuck
