YOKED (Part 1)

There was no defining moment, not one single moment where I went from dealing with shock, disbelief, anger, grief, self-pity, hurt, and on and on and on to where I am today. Rather, there have been many things that have had to happen to get me to a place where I have accepted this journey as a growing experience. It has been a turning point in my life as far as my relationship with Christ. This is not to say that I have “arrived”. By no means do I feel that “all is well with the world“. I still struggle. I still hurt. I still get angry. I plan in the near future to document and share some of the emotions that I have experienced and my struggles with each one of them. But I have loved Him, longed for Him, depended on Him more than I ever have in my entire life. He allowed all of this and I am thankful.

The verses below are so familiar that I could have recited them by heart, but they had never spoken to me in the way that they did a few months ago. I had never needed them like I did at that moment. God used them to begin a change in me. He began chipping away some of the hurt, pain, and confusion from my heart.

Come unto me all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me, for I am meek and lowly in heart; and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. Matthew 11: 28-30

The Greek translation for yoke in this passage of scripture is Zeugos, meaning Team.

In other words, a yoke is a harness meant for more than just one. A yoke is meant for a team!!

I read about various yokes used on the oxen and here is what I learned: There are different kinds of yokes: The head yoke, the neck yoke, and the withers yoke. The head yoke is strapped behind the horns. The neck yoke is bow or u shaped and fits around the neck. It is also called the bow yoke. The withers yoke is placed in front of the withers (the highest point on the animal’s back). Regardless of the location, the head, neck, or withers, they are all strapped or harnessed to the oxen’s body. They are tools, or means by which to haul, drag, or pull. It is to the yoke that the wagon, plow, or other equipment is attached.

Here is the interesting part that I read, the part that really got me to thinking: The head yoke is the favored yoke by the farmers because it restricts the oxen’s head movement, forcing them to stand still. They are quieter with less fighting or resisting. This tells me that the oxen are less than eager to have this apparatus strapped to their bodies. They do not want yokes!

Life is a journey. Along the way we encounter trials and heartaches and they are unwanted. We WILL get to the destination or to the end of the trial, but it is what is in between that really matters - the journey! How are we going to get through it? Are we going to try to go alone or with the wrong team mate? Are we going to go from point A to point B fighting, kicking, and screaming, so tired that by the time we get to the end we are of no good to anyone, not to others, God, ourselves? Or are we going to allow God to carry the burden? This is what He wants to do!! Will we reach the end stronger, a better person because of it? To be continued...