Just Come

I used to wonder as a child why all the adults got so cranky and frazzled around Christmas. Then I joined the adult realm and the veil of mystery was torn away. With the activity of decorating, baking, extra times of ministry/church, Christmas cards, shopping, wrapping presents, preparing guest rooms--and that's just the short list--it's a wonder that anyone has anything left when the big day arrives. I think this is the first year that I have experienced the depths of this frenzied activity to the point of complete meltdown--and I don't even have kids or a husband or family to deal with on top of it! Are these the kinds of Christmases I have to look forward to now?

As I contemplate this holiday craziness, I hear Jesus' simple invitation from Matthew 11:28:

"Come to Me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest."

So simple. Just come. And who is it that this invitation is for? I was curious about the original Greek meanings of "labor" and "heavy laden", so I looked them up in the Strong's dictionary:

LABOR: kopiaō--to feel fatigue; by implication to work hard
HEAVY LADEN: phortizō--to load up (properly as a vessel or animal), that is, (figuratively) to overburden with ceremony (or spiritual anxiety)

So the invitation is to the tired, hard-working people who are overburdened with ceremony or spiritual anxiety. I'm sure that describes a lot of us around this holiday time. Fortunately Jesus is the same yesterday, today and forever (Hebrews 13:8), and His invitation still stands: "Come to Me..." If you or I want to find rest, true refreshing rest for ourselves in the hustle and bustle of life (not just the holiday season), then we just need to pause and seek out our Savior, Jesus Christ.