Matthew 11 – Judy in the Sky

Remember – My grandma used to say that hindsight is 20/20. Normally when I finish a book, like we just finished Matthew yesterday, I start to pray about where to go next and the Lord will lay the course before my prayer is even finished. That didn’t happen yesterday or this morning. So I opened my journal…

I went to retreat last month and the first words I received were CEASE STRIVING. Since reviving my faith in 2004 I have had an unquenchable desire to know the LORD more and more. I have said yes to so much, and it’s all valued, but now is the time to cease striving and simply rest in who Jesus is and receive his love.

That was bewildering news at first. I came looking for my next assignment, and Jesus said cease striving. But it became wonderful as I turned off the ‘shoulds’, the busyness of life, and simply spent time with the Lord… and myself for that matter. Seeing how God delights in me just for me was long overdue!

“Come to me, all who labor and are heavy ladened, and I will give you rest.” Matthew 11:28

Journal August 22, 2022: Oh Lord, yes, rest. May I take off the world and the things I can’t change. (and I listed 5 people/situations that are constants in my prayers) Thank you for the gift of time and free will – Lord, I pray they choose wisely, but I am released from the outcome.

Release… what a beautiful word, and only you can give it. Jesus, you say: “Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart. and you will find rest for your soul.” Matthew 11:29

Abba, I don’t know what this day holds. I ask that you blind me from my day to day life and put me fully HERE. Awaken my childlike faith. May I be greedy for you. May I seek you and find you in unexpected ways. Thank you my Abba, my Love, my Savior – In Jesus name, amen.

Beloved, may you delight in remembering and pursuing the relationship with Jesus on your own unique and personal level. He loves you so much!

Read Matthew 11 – Love is a battlefield – the fight for souls is a battlefield – God Almighty longs for us so much that he sent Jesus into our fallen world to live a sinless life, die on the Cross and be resurrected for our atonement; Jesus is our Salvation. His very life paid the cost of our sin… “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” John 3:16

Jesus and John the Baptist have a conversation through John’s disciples, as John was in prison. John wanted to know if Jesus was the long awaited Messiah. Jesus offers the fruit of his ministry as evidence… Anyone could say yes, but the fruit, the healings, restored life even from the dead, and the Good News preached confirm Jesus’s legitimacy. (:1-6) The fruit of one’s life confirms who they are more than their words.

We live in perilous times; evil no longer tries to hide. The battle continues to escalate and verse :12 is a wake-up to the battle at hand. Jesus says, “From the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven has suffered violence, and the violent take it by force.”

Jesus says: “To what can I compare this generation: They are like children sitting in the market-places calling out to others: ‘We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we sang a dirge, and you did not mourn.’ “ :16-17

Beloved, may your faith be strong and wise. May Jesus meet you in your prayers to fiercely protect and snatch those otherwise perishing. Do not be like these people Jesus speaks of who are so blinded by the world’s expectations that they miss the truth of who Jesus is and the Salvation that he freely gives.

Take heart in what Jesus offers when he says, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30