Today the Lord calls all to be part of his life, to center our lives in him. In the midst of all of life’s difficulties, setbacks, and tragedies, we often feel crushed. With Jesus as our center, we find rest. A life centered that way is full of joy. When Jesus says “rest”, he does not mean that Christians are exempt from difficult times or that Christians should withdraw from life to “sleep”. A life without a center produces overwhelming difficulties. This Advent season is a time to awake. It is meant to help us appreciate and prepare for our encounter with Jesus who is always coming to us, looking to be reborn in each of us and our families. But this is the season of the year when we are more shattered and distracted. We run from one activity to another, as lost people, worried about all that we have to do, all that we lack, all our dreams: the turkey, the chocolate, the decorations, the Christmas carols, the concerts, the parties, the family reunions, the toys and the gifts. So, at this time of the year life becomes insupportable, a heavy weight. We look to many things to produce the joy and reason of our life. Even though many of them are good and important values, the external signs of joy and rest become the center of our lives and rob us of our relationship with Jesus, the real center.
Today the prophet reminds us that God the creator is always with us even when we feel faint and abandoned. This is the season to remember that Jesus came and was born in Bethlehem, and he continues to come to be part of our daily lives.
Jesus sums it up:
“Come to me…. I will give you rest….my yoke is easy, and my burden light”
Image: https://dailyverse.knowing-jesus.com/matthew-11-28.