Freely & Lightly.
One passage I'm perennially drawn to is Matthew 11:28-30, the familiar invitation from Jesus to “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest….” It’s not uncommon for me to feel “weary” with the demands and challenges of life, and maybe you can relate. Several years ago, I came across this passage in The Message translation, and it was a “Whoa!” experience. See what you think of this:
Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.
Does that speak to you like it speaks to me?
When I look back across the landscape of my life, I think it’s fair to say that I’ve been seeking the “unforced rhythms of grace” for all my days. And as such, I have adopted the phrase “Freely and Lightly” as my overarching vision for life. Are you with me?
I’d like to invite you to explore this passage with me in a series of posts as we examine 12 portions of this brilliant description of Jesus’ idea of the spiritual life.
Are You Tired? When is the last time you felt physically exhausted? Go ahead, think back until you find that moment. Where were you? What were you doing?…
Worn Out? We can’t really talk honestly about the experience of “worn out” without acknowledging the global reality of COVID and its unparalleled impact on our collective human experience for the past year…
Burned Out? For contemporary Christians the word “religion” often has negative connotations. The word itself actually comes from the Latin religio and is related to the English word ligament: to connect or attach…
Come “Thin places.” Have you come across that term before? It’s often applied to geographic locations that feel particularly sacred, an abiding presence, holy ground…
Away “Away” has changed my life. Almost exactly 22 years ago, I took my first sabbatical. I was a 34-year-old pastor, and the staff was getting our first-ever round of extended time off…
Recover I have a complicated relationship with time. See if any of this sounds familiar to you. I spend a lot of time managing my calendar. I often find myself trying to fill every block in my calendar with activity…
Real Rest Today I worked harder physically than I have in a long time, and you know what? It felt great. It was the epitome of “good tired.” It was the opposite of yesterday…
Walk & Work (coming soon!)