I know what you’re thinking. You spelled yolk wrong. But did I? It might appear at first glance that I am writing about eggs. I am not. In fact, I made my eggs into cinnamon rolls, which has literally nothing to do with today’s Gospel or this reflection. Let’s see if you still stick around. 🙂

“Jesus said: 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 meek and humble of Heart; and you will find rest for yourselves. For my yoke is easy and my burden light.”

Matthew 11:28-30

Yep, that was the entire Gospel for today. Short but mighty.

We are vacationing in southern Colorado and hit daily Mass every chance we can. Fr. Sam, a priest from Nigeria, is the Pastor at JPII in Pagosa Springs. He started his homily off by inviting us to join him in singing the hymn, “What a friend we have in Jesus.” (Medlicott Scriven,1855)

Because I was not blessed with the gift of song, I cringed as did some of the others in the small adoration chapel where morning Mass is held. It’s a Christian hymn that began as a poem Medlicott had written to his mother in Ireland. We’re all generally familiar with the tune and refrain, but much less familiar with the chorus.  Giving it our best shot, we quickly faded after the first stanza. You know the mumble-humming noise we make when we don’t know the words. Fr. Sam had the advantage of his phone to bravely carry on without us. The words really struck me for the first time, particularly in the context of the Gospel.

“What a Friend we have in Jesus,

All our sins and griefs to bear!

What a privilege to carry

Everything to God in prayer!

O what peace we often forfeit,

O what needless pain we bear,

All because we do not carry

Everything to God in prayer!”

Let me connect the dots for you as they flowed for me today. In the first reading from the Book of Exodus, 3:13-20, Moses speaks to the Lord for the first time through a burning bush. You know the story. God reveals His name to Moses, “I Am, who Am.” He continues by connecting the lineage for him, “The LORD, the God of your fathers. The God of Abraham, the God of Issac, the God of Jacob.”

Bring this home and we have Jesus, the Second Person of the Trinity—God the Great I AM, inviting us to come to Him when we are burdened, and he will…make it heavier? No. “And I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of Heart; and you will find rest for yourselves.“

Who doesn’t want rest? I’m pooped. Even our vacations are exhausting.

We are people stretched to the breaking point. We carry burdens too heavy for us to bear alone. We try and try, to no avail, and are more burdened due to our delay to pray. And the troubles compound. We need that friend named Jesus.

“O, what needless pain we bear, all because we do not carry everything to God in prayer!”

So why do we delay? Why do we hesitate?

I don’t want to bother Jesus with my little stuff. He’s so busy with the whole world.

Nonsense and lame excuses.

How small is your God?

Oh, you of little faith, why do you doubt? Matt 14:31

I know what my problem is: I delay because I think I’ve got this, I can take care of things, until I can’t, and now they’re bigger and more convoluted because I got involved.

What’s your problem?

We have been given this amazing friend who happens to be omnipotent because He is God. He took a moment out of eternal bliss to become one of us, to live in the muck and mess we humans have made of things. We got ourselves in so deep that it took God Himself in the Person of Jesus Christ to get us out. It cost Him everything, and He did it with infinite love for each of us.

How do we repay this endless gift of love? We ignore Him. Blaspheme Him. Make a mockery of Him in our media and creative works.

…And the most painful thing of all to His Sacred Heart is that we don’t go to Him. We don’t let Him be the Lord of our lives. We fail to love and entrust everything to Him in humble, contrite prayer, which hurts more than the crucifixion ever did.

Christ’s love and friendship conquer death.

Christ’s love and friendship bring about miracles.

Christ’s love and friendship are the yoke that is easy and the burden that is light.

O Jesus, meek and humble of Heart, make our hearts like unto thine.