Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.” Matthew 11:28-30
I was a 36 year old husband, father and ministry leader who had been a Christian since I was 4 years old. For many years I read this scripture and a soul at rest sounded SO good and I had no idea what it meant. My soul was anything but at rest and I’m guessing you might be able to relate.
If you have been a Christian for any length of time, you know the RIGHT answer is to live with a soul at rest, but the REAL answer is we often live with worry, anxiousness, nervousness, frustration or discouragement. We might know the right answer, but we don’t know how to align the right answer in our own lives to have it become the real answer for how we are living.
If you’re anything like me, you desperately want the right answer and the real answer for your life to be a soul at rest. But how can you get there? In short, it takes an intentional journey through 2 important steps: Revealed and then Healed. Let me explain.
Revealed
I grew up with quite a bit of trauma that was never addressed in my life. In fact, when I was 11 years old, my mom moved out and took two of my two younger brothers with her and left my older brother and me with my dad. After about a year and a half, my parents worked things out and mom moved back home but, in the process, my dad pulled my older brother and I aside and said, “Moms coming home, we aren’t talking about it, we’re moving on.”
So, I tried my best to move on until the age of 36 when all that pain and trauma would finally be addressed by a mentor in my life. He recognized that I was unaware of some anger and anxiety I was carrying, and he started asking some questions that began to reveal that I had some issues to work through.
This is the first step to living with a soul at rest: Revealed.
My mentor helped Reveal that I needed to become more aware of how my difficult childhood was affecting me. Revealed was important because awareness is the first step, but it’s not the last. Once something has been revealed, it’s now time for the second step toward a soul at rest: Healed.
Revealed opens us up to the opportunity to be Healed. For me this, took6 years of counseling to go back and deal with my family trauma.
Get the Order Right
Revealed + Healed = A Soul at Rest
But too often today we see a desire let the raw truth of our past come out. Revealing our pain is an essential first step, but stopping there leaves us vulnerable. A wound that is exposed but not treated will only fester. A soul that is aware of its brokenness but does not seek healing remains restless. This is why Jesus’ invitation in Matthew 11:28-30 is so crucial. He doesn’t just acknowledge our burdens—He offers to carry them.
True healing comes when we take our wounds to God. This isn’t about suppressing emotions or pretending everything is fine. It’s about bringing our deepest hurts before the One who can restore and redeem them.
For me, healing didn’t happen overnight. It took years of counseling, prayer, and discipleship. But the key to my healing wasn’t just self-awareness—it was surrender. I had to trust that God’s grace was greater than my past, that His love was strong enough to cover my pain, and that His power could transform my heart.
Maybe you’ve already started the process of revealing your pain. That’s good. But don’t stop there. Take the next step. Bring your brokenness to God and let Him heal you. A soul at rest isn’t just aware of its struggles; it is anchored in the peace that only Christ can give.
Healing isn’t about erasing the past—it’s about letting God redeem it. It’s about trading anxiety for trust, bitterness for grace, and burdens for His rest. When we do that, we finally experience what Jesus promised: a soul at rest.
