Jesus said to the crowds:
“Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened,
and I will give you rest.
Take my yoke upon you and learn from me,
for I am meek and humble of heart;
and you will find rest for yourselves.
For my yoke is easy, and my burden light.”
We live and work and worship and do our best in all things. As followers of Jesus Christ we strive and seek to do his will and follow his way. To live as he taught and be Christ and light for others.
And in the midst of our living we must make decisions on matters big and small. What will I eat or drink. What clothes to wear.
Should I watch this movie or read that book. Many choices and decisions are easy and seem inconsequential to the big picture of life and love and our relationships with God and others.
But many, probably most choices, really do have a right choice and a good option over others. Because we put God first in everything, as Jesus taught us, we hopefully ask ourselves “is this choice the will of God, or should I choose another.”
And it can be tough to wade through the multitude of voices telling us what we should do. Some good voices and some not so good.
We can allow feelings of fear or doubt or anger rule how we act or speak. You know what I mean if you drive a car at all.
But as we grow spiritually we need to tune in to the will of God. Make sure we are listening to his voice. For most of us we will have times that is not easy.
Life is full of stress and hard decisions to make. We can experience terrible anxiety and fear and even desperation. The weight of it all can drive many to drink or drugs or other escapes that do not serve us well physically or spiritually.
And we can be overwhelmed by responsibility and requirements of life.
But there is a better way to live. And that’s to always seek his will and choose what makes best sense given the teaching Christ.
Some are easy. Be kind and charitable. Love others. If the choice is to be rude or kind that’s easy.
If the choice is what job to take or what business decision to make, things can get harder to discern and at times we wonder if this decision or that decision really matters to God at all. Will it be relevant?
But everything we do and choose and say and every action we take is very important to God. The one who can count every sparrow and every hair on our head cares about the little things.
So how do we manage it.
We ask if the choice brings peace or chaos.
We ask if the choice promote life and is good for others.
We ask if it focuses on our strengths or weaknesses.
Do we choose out of fear or hope.
Do we find ourselves closer to God or further away.
Are we choosing something that will mean more pressure or peace.
Good choices aligning with God’s will are easy and we don’t have to force them.
They are made from our strengths and are not chosen because of insecurities
And they build up and don’t require us to be less than we are.
And with prayer and listening, they are supported by everything we know about Jesus Christ.
Doors open and choices are clear. It feels like new life.
Chaos and confusion and pressure and anxiety or from the evil one.
Jesus says “his burden is light” and his way natural and open for his follower.
And our decisions should be made thinking about who Jesus was and what he has taught us. Even the little decisions. And certainly, the big ones.
Deacon Tony Pynes 
Leave a comment