Matthew 11:28-30 Come
to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest… For my yoke
is easy, and my burden is light.”
Why do we
never seem to measure up? Even Christians suffer from many of the same feelings
and practices that torture unbelievers. Guilt, shame, anxiety, unworthiness,
tiredness and spiritual malaise seem to be the symptoms of many followers of
Christ. Jesus responds to this problem by calling us to himself.
We are tired from the relationships that we have been in over the years
that had conditions attached to them. Relationships are not to be conditional
in some situations. A parents love for their children is to be unconditional. A
wife’s love for the husband, and visa versa, is to be like Christ’s love for
the Church, unconditional. Other relationships are conditional, like work. You
perform the task you are hired for and you will be paid.
Unhealthy relationships attach expectations that should not exist or that are inappropriate for the relationship. These expectations
are “carrots” or conditions that earn
you things that in a normal, healthy relationship you are given freely. Unhealthy relationships teach you to see all relationships as conditional. As a result,
life becomes a contest where you perform to a specified level in order to receive someone’s affection, love or interest.
The
result of these unhealthy relationships is that
you are left with “a sense of shame that you as a
person are unacceptable... draining
away emotional and spiritual strength as you try constantly to measure up to
standards that are higher than you can reach…. [and that] have become so deeply ingrained that you are not even aware of them, let
alone conscious of how to get free from their tyranny.” (Tired of
Trying to Measure Up, pg.12)
Unhealthy relationships can be overcome. Work to understand the untruthful messages you operate
with, see the behavior they cause you to perform and learn to apply God’s Word to these challenges. Jesus loves us for free. He promises to set us
free. The tiredness can go away, for free!
