What is the biggest weight you have ever carried?

I know some mothers think it is their growing children.

My children are grown. So, these days, the heaviest items I carry are bags of salt for my water purifier (not fun) and my grandchildren (pure joy)!

But, truly, these aren’t the heaviest weights I carry. The heaviest weights we all carry are those we carry in our souls.

We all have them.

Sins we have committed. Untruths we have spoken. Words we shouldn’t have said. Words we should have said but didn’t. Burdens. Heavy burdens.

What does God say about these burdens we carry?

“Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” (Matthew 11 28-30).

Jesus offers us a different way. He invites us to come to Him, to take up His yoke, and to learn from Him.

But what does this mean?

The Jews at the time Christ was speaking were “heavily burdened” by their religious laws. Over the course of hundreds of years, the laws had expanded in span and in depth. Rules on how to wash your hands. Rules on how to pray. Rules on what type of work could be done—and when. Rule upon rule—it became impossible to meet all of these regulations. And so, Jews who wanted to draw near to God found themselves under a heavy load of laws.

Jesus offered a lighter load. When we invite Him in, He lives within us and moves us toward holiness. We don’t need law upon law. We need to follow His ways.

But, He offers to free us from more than the burden of the law. He offers us the freedom from the burden of the sins we carry with us—that heavy load.

We place our sins, our untruths, our misdeeds in front of Him. We confess them, naming each one. We repent. And then, we turn away from them.

And, it doesn’t end there. Jesus tells us not to look back—to move on. “Your sins are forgiven”.

This is the way you shed your burdens forever.

You confess them.

You turn away from them. You repent.

And He carries them off.

Once we do this, what awaits us? Jesus states this clearly.

He gives us rest for our souls. He gives us an easy yoke. He gives us only a light burden.

I heard an interview with Os Guinness last week. He said that he spoke with a person who had no faith in God. When he asked that person what he found most compelling about Christianity, if anything, the man said “confession”. He said that if he were to believe in God it would be because His followers confess —they go on record against themselves.

But, what this man did not realize was that this act of “going on record with God against ourselves” is a pathway to blessing because of forgiveness. Because we are offered easy yokes and light burdens.

Lay it down.

Give your burdens to your Lord—always.

And walk away with a new lightness!