[Teisha Nolen]

I remember a time in my life when I would cling so tightly to this verse. I was a mother, a wife, a daughter, a sister, a friend, an employee, a worship leader. There were days and moments when I felt the weight of expectation from all of those “titles,” and sometimes I feared that weight would crush me. No amount of physical rest seemed to fix the exhaustion I sometimes felt inside. I remember hearing this verse and feeling as if God was speaking directly to me. I turned to the book of Matthew and studied all that I could on Matthew 11:28-30, turning it over and over in my mind. It was then that I realized I was trying to do everything in my own power, working as hard as I could in Jesus’ name, but not taking the time to rest in Him and consider His expectations. “For my yoke is easy and my burden is light” (Matthew 11:30).