Don't do it alone!

When it rains it pours! All bad things happen in 3’s. Do those two quotes describe the current or past season in your life? Have you ever feel like you are in a hail storm of mishap, tragedy and bad luck? Believe it or not, you are not alone, every human being feels that way at some point in their life. Although the level of life circumstance varies among us, the overwhelming feeling of doom or the question ‘why me’ is a common thread among humans.

Someone I loved dearly passed away not to long ago. It was a tragic accident and he left behind a beautiful wife, beautiful home, a job he loved, hobbies he had fun with, two dogs he adored and his unborn daughter that he and his wife tried desperately to conceive for a long time. He touched so many lives both in life and in his death. The sadness was crippling for his wife, but through the tears, she picked herself up, dusted herself off and proceeded with life. She was inundated with love and support from family and friends, and also from her church. Months later her daughter was born, and that baby was the most amazing blessing to her mother and all of us who loved and missed her daddy as a piece of him was with us all again. The excitement of a baby was softened by tears, as once again her mama was reminded of her loss. She had to pick herself up, dust herself off and proceed on, again with the support of family, friends and her church.

A couple months later tragedy struck once again for her as both of her dogs were attacked by coyotes and passed away, the pain once again was crippling. So many of us asked, “Why God? Hasn’t she been through enough?” But the truth is, God didn’t want this for her, God didn’t choose any of this to happen to her, God knew it was going to happen as he knows every hair on our heads, and God did what He could by giving her so many family and friends to surround her during this time of strife.

In Matthew 11:28-30 Jesus said, “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.” Many of us are unfamiliar with a “yoke.” A yoke is a device for joining together (usually animals) to enable them to work together to pull a load. In that passage, Jesus says, “Take my yoke upon you . . . my yoke is easy to bear and the burden I give you is light.” Jesus wants to join forces with us to make our load easier to bear. The Lord of Lords and the King of Kings wants to help bear our load.

All hail storms are different. Some last longer than others, some pieces of hail are larger than other, but none the less, a hail storm is a hail storm, and Jesus does not want us to battle it alone. The young mom in the story above has been yoked with the Lord as well as her family and friends. That is how she is able to continue to pick herself up, dust herself off and proceed through life. She cannot do it alone, and neither can you. When life gives you more than you can handle, yoke up with Jesus and He, too, will make your burden light.

Kristie Fields
Writer