I have an image of the Sacred Heart of Jesus hanging on the wall of my bedroom, and if I am paying attention, I see it every time I exit. It is not an easy image to see. In fact, I’m typically moved more by art that depicts depth of emotion, even if it is painful. The image is titled For God so Loved the World (google it!), and its author is unknown. It depicts Jesus and His Sacred Heart, with blood coming from His brow and tears streaming down His face wrought with pain.
It makes me cringe. Seeing His pain can sometimes be so convicting for me as I imagine Him saying, “I did this for you.” And, I think to myself, “I did this to You.”
Yet, He tells us that His yoke is easy and His burden light and begs us to bring it upon ourselves. Easy? Light? He was brutally killed.
But, He won.
He bore the pain of us all, and He opened the gates of Heaven for eternity. His yoke is easy and His burden light because He has already done the heavy lifting. He has already paid the price. We are only asked to love Him.
Pretty simple, right? Sometimes it just does not seem so. Going against the grain in order to be yoked to Him is difficult. I’m convinced that God was talking about our hearts primarily because while the struggles and crosses do not always go away when we choose to yoke ourselves to Him, our hearts are freed. From guilt. From restlessness. And from relentless desire to please.
Today, as we labor and are burdened, let us look to His Sacred Heart, see His pain, and know so deeply that He did this because He loves us so very much. He wants us to be at peace. He wants us to love. He simply wants us . . . all of us.
And, He offers to carry our burdens so choosing Him might be easier. Why don’t we let Him?
Britt Fisk is a wife to a rancher, mom to six, and a photographer from time to time. She spends her days raising cattle on the grasslands of New Mexico while homeschooling her little ones. You can find out more about her here
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