Daily Gospel Reflection

An Invitation to True Rest

Welcome back to Radical and Relevant, where each day we explore the life and teachings of Jesus in the Gospels, looking for a word or a phrase or an idea to inspire us to bring the gospel to life in new and interesting, different and innovative ways each day. Today's reading comes from the Gospel of Matthew, chapter 11, verses 28 through 30. "Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble of heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light." What jumps out at you today? What's the Holy Spirit stir within you? It's all of us, right? Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened and I will give you rest. That's the whole world. That's everyone on the planet. And it's a beautiful invitation. I think it's an invitation to come to God, spend time with God. Maybe it's an invitation to stop by your church today and just sit there before the tabernacle or stop by adoration and sit there before the monstrance and just allow God to minister to us. "Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest." But then he goes on to say, "My yoke is easy. My burden is light."

When we're seeking to do the will of God, we're like in this slipstream. We're like have this wind at our back. We have this accompaniment. But when we're wrestling with God, when we're wrestling against his will, we're really trying to conform the whole universe to our will, and that is exhausting. That is always a struggle. That is just, it's just grind after grind after grind. And Jesus is saying, "Come away from that. Stop trying to wrestle the whole universe to go along with your plans. Come and sit with me and let me reveal my plans to you, and you can go out and walk with me in those plans. And my yoke is easy, my burden is light. Come to me, I will give you rest." Let's find a way to encounter Jesus in that way today. And let's stop wrestling with the whole universe. Surrender in new ways to his way. Have an amazing day. And remember, Be Bold, Be Catholic.