Last night looked a little different as far as the message goes. Instead of a typical "Leader gets up and talks about something for half an hour", we looked at a couple of different scenarios and then worked in small groups to unpack what the Bible had to say about how to handle those scenarios. Before the message time, however, we took turns whacking each other with foam swords in a series of duels.
Let me ask you a question. When you have a problem, where do you go for advice? Do you have a particular friend who is your "go to" for problem-solving? Does it depend on what kind of problem it is? Maybe you have a good relationship with your parents and you often go to them for advice. Every now and then someone will come to me, but I'm not usually their "Option A" (maybe more like "Option Z"). So, where do you go? Take a second and really lock in an answer before reading further. Got it? Good.
Was your answer "I go to God and His Word"? My guess is, probably not. One of the main problems I see in our group is that we (yes, I am including myself in this) will go just about anywhere else first for advice before going to God and the Bible. For some reason, our gut instinct is to ask a friend, or a parent, or even Google before opening up the Bible for answers. The crazy thing about this is that we would rather trust other created beings than trust the Almighty Creator. I mean, seriously, if we really believe that God created everything (which according to our beliefs, He did) then wouldn't He be the first person we go to for advice on how to live in His Creation?
Logically, it makes sense for us to go to God. But the sad truth is that often, we don't. This needs to change. Our gut instinct should be to go to God first. To read the Bible first, before going to other people (who can then help us understand what God says to do in the Bible). Last night, in an effort to get this point across, I had everybody split into groups and work through case studies. Each group was given a short scenario and some Bible verses to look through. Their goal was to figure out what the person in the scenario should do according to what the Bible said about that scenario. I won't share the scenarios here, but the point of the message was to show that the Bible has the answer. God knows how to handle any and every situation we come across, and He has given us access to that knowledge through His written Word. All we have to do is read it.
Matthew 11:28-30 says this: "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."
When we have problems in this life, and stress is weighing us down, Jesus invites us to come alongside Him. He invites us to go to Him with our problems so He can share the load. The imagery in this passage ties back to an old farming technique, where two oxen would be connected together through a wooden device called a "yoke". The yoke kept the oxen side-by-side as they dragged a large plow through the dirt to loosen it and make it ready for planting. When training new oxen for this, what the farmer would do is take an older, seasoned ox and pair him with a young, inexperienced ox. The older ox, who knew what to do, would lead the way (taking most of the weight and doing most of the work) as the young ox had no choice but to follow. Over time, the young ox learned what to do and would be able to work with the old ox so that they were working together. That is what Jesus invites us to. He is the old ox - full of experience and knowledge of what to do - and we are the young ox - inexperienced and untrained. He offers to guide us through life and teach us the way we should go, all we have to do is go to Him.
So, if you're frustrated by the problems of this life, and you don't know what to do - look to Jesus. Go to Him, read His Word and learn from Him, and He will give you rest for your soul. He will show you the way. My hope is that moving forward, your first instinct when facing a new problem would be to go to the Bible. And if you don't know where to look, or you don't understand what it says, go to a leader, come talk to me. We are literally here to help you grow and mature in your walk with God, so we would love to hear from you and help you find answers.
If you have a situation and you need advice, or would like to know what the Bible has to say about handling that situation, you can post it anonymously in the comments below or share it in the box at the church (oh yeah, we have a box for questions now). My plan is to take one every week and share about it during the message. That's all for now, God bless you and your family.
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