A Yoke of Peace and Grace
by Jim Person
Many of us rush through life trying to get it right. We struggle to succeed in school and find it constraining and frustrating. We try to please everyone and find out in the end we haven’t pleased anyone. Life seems a series of disappointments and pain. Then we graduate from high school and enter into university and apply the same tactics as before, with the same results. We enter into the workplace and find we haven’t escaped this pattern in our life. Finally we come to a breaking point and come to the pastor of the church in which we’ve been serving for 15 years asking for help.
Maybe this seems like an extreme case, but unfortunately this is a common situation that many people face in life. Through our understanding, and what we have learned to value, we become people-pleasing individuals.
But God has a different way. One of peace and grace! He has a specific yoke for us to bear with Him! Never does He ask us to do everything for everyone, always considering everyone else’s needs and neglecting our own (Philippians 2:4). Striving to please others often indicates an area in our lives that God wants to heal and restore to the right balance. It could be rejection in our past that we received from a parent or someone significant in our life that causes us to be all things to all people. Even in that statement we should see that we’re straying from the truth. It’s not our place to be all things to all people, it’s God’s.
When we strive we’re stepping outside God’s covering and allowing the enemy to gain a foothold in our lives. In order to succeed in our journey with the Lord we need to be able to release the hold we have on our lives and allow Him to take us forward. Being in the presence of the Lord, especially in difficult times, is essential to our well-being. So, today, my encouragement to you is to allow God full access to your life, yielding the hold you have on your life, and allowing His gentle, work-hardened hands to take the reins - to take the lead.
Prayer: Jesus, I’ve tried to do it all myself and I’m tired. Will You take Your rightful place as Lord in my life. I surrender my life into Your gentle, capable hands. Teach me, dear Lord, how to know when to let go, and when to hold on. I need to have Your yoke in my life, but I’m not sure how. Will You guide my steps as I walk through the process of surrender. Thank You, Lord. Amen.
Jim Person Jim grew up in Alaska and from a small child commercial fished every summer with his family. God called him, his wife Tanya, and their four children to move to Hungary as missionaries in 2003. God then led him to join Ellel Ministries in 2005. After serving in various positions with Ellel in Central and Eastern Europe, God led them back to the United States, where he is now serving with the Ellel USA team. Jim and Tanya have a passion to see leaders restored, the church discipled and walking in God’s fullness of life and freedom. They also love mentoring the existing and developing Ellel teams wherever God leads them. Jim also has a real gift for working with the land to create a beautiful and welcoming environment.
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