He will protect His flock like a shepherd, He will gather the lambs in His arm, He will carry them in His bosom; He will gently and carefully lead those nursing their young. (Isa 40:11, CEV)

Jesus knows us individually, and is touched with the feeling of our infirmities. He knows us all by name. He knows the very house in which we live, the name of each occupant. He has at times given directions to His servants to go to a certain street in a certain city, to such a house, to find one of His sheep.{DA 479.3}
God is often pictured as a shepherd, gently caring for and guiding his flock. He is powerful (Isa 40:10), yet careful and gentle. He is called a shepherd (Psalms 23); the good shepherd (John 10:11, John 10:14); the great Shepherd (Heb 13:20); and the Great Shepherd (1 Pet 5:4). Note that the shepherd is caring for the most defenseless members of his society: children and those caring for them. This reinforces the prophetic theme that the truly powerful nation is not the one with a strong military, but rather the one that relies on God’s caring strength to look after those in want, and the many families that are suffering these days.
Religion that is pure and undefiled before God the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.(James 1:27, ESV)
Defend the poor and fatherless: do justice to the afflicted and needy. Deliver the poor and needy: rid them out of the hand of the wicked. (Psalms 82:3-4)
In the first century, orphans and widows had very little means of economic support. Unless a family member was willing to care for them, they were reduced to begging, selling themselves as slaves, or starving. By caring for these people, the church put God’s Word into practice. When we give with no thought of receiving, we show what it means to truly serve others.
To keep ourselves from letting “the world” corrupt us, we need to commit ourselves to Christ’s ethical and moral system, not the world’s. We are not to adapt to the world’s value system, which is based on money, power, pleasure, convenience. True faith means nothing if we are contaminated with such values that tear down the foundations of our “religion.”
A Christian is a Christlike man, a Christlike woman, who is active in God’s service, who is present at the social meeting, whose presence will encourage others also. Religion does not consist in works, but religion works; it is not dormant {7BC 935.13}
Many seem to feel that religion has a tendency to make its possessor narrow and cramped, but genuine religion does not have a narrowing influence; it is the lack of religion that cramps the faculties and narrows the mind. When a person is narrow, it is an evidence that they need the grace of God, the heavenly anointing; for a Christian is one whom the Lord, the God of hosts, can work through, that they may keep the ways of the Lord of the earth and make manifest His will to others.{7BC 935.14}
It is not enough for us to believe that Jesus is not an impostor, and that the religion of the Bible is no cunningly devised fable. We may believe that the name of Jesus is the only name under heaven whereby man may be saved, and yet we may not through faith make Him our personal Savior. It is not enough to believe the theory of truth. It is not enough to make a profession of faith in Christ and have our names registered on the church roll. “He that keeps His commandments dwells in Him, and He in him. And hereby we know that He abides in us, by the Spirit which He hath given us.” “Hereby we do know that we know Him if we keep His commandments.” 1 John 3:24; 2:3. This is the genuine evidence of conversion. Whatever our profession, it amounts to nothing unless Christ is revealed in works of righteousness. {COL 312.3}
“Come to me all of you who are tired from the heavy [yoke] you have been forced to carry. I will give you rest. (Mat 11:28, ERV)
A yoke is a heavy wooden harness that fits over the shoulders of an ox or oxen. It is attached to a piece of equipment the oxen are to pull. A person may be carrying heavy burdens of
(1) sin,
(2) excessive demands of religious leaders (Mat 23:4; Act 15:10),
(3) oppression and persecution, or
(4) weariness in the search for God.
Jesus frees people from all these burdens. The rest that Jesus promises is love, healing, and peace with God, not the end of all labor. A relationship with God changes meaningless, wearisome toil into spiritual productivity and purpose.
“Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.” (Mat 11:28-30, Msg)
The Yoke of Restraint and Obedience.
Christ says, “Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you”–the yoke of restraint and obedience–“and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.” We are to find rest by wearing His yoke and bearing His burdens. In being co-workers with Christ in the great work for which He gave His life, we shall find true rest. When we were sinners, He gave His life for us. He wants us to come to Him and learn of Him. Thus we are to find rest. He says He will give us rest. “Learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart.” In doing this you will find in your own experience the rest that Christ gives, the rest that comes from wearing His yoke and lifting His burdens {5BC 1090.3}
Your work is not to gather up burdens of your own. As you take the burdens that Christ would have you, then you can realize what burdens He carried. Let us study the Bible, and find out what kind of yoke He bore. He was a help to those around Him. He says: “Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.”
You see there is a yoke to bear. Now this is the very faith that we want–a faith that will grasp the promises of God, one that will take the yoke of Christ and bear the burdens that He would have us. We often think we are having a hard time in bearing burdens, and it is too often the case, because God has not made any provision for us to carry these burdens; but when we bear His yoke and carry His burdens, we can testify that the yoke of Christ is easy and His burdens are light, because He has made provision for these.
But when you feel depressed and discouraged, do not give up the battle; you have a living Savior that will help you, and you will have rest in Him. You must not put your neck under the yoke of fashion, and yokes that God has never designed that you should bear. It is not our work to study how to meet the world’s standard, but the great question with each one should be, How can I meet God’s standard? Then it is that you will find rest to the soul; for Christ has said, “My yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” {5BC 1091.2}