The past month was traumatic for me. It was as if the whole world had a plan to frustrate me, every facet from family to work and much more. I was troubled and confused to the point of asking myself if I would be able to cope. I was tired, broken and just needed assurance and some rest.
In such a state, you will agree that it is difficult to be logical not to talk of falling back on our faith foundation. After experiencing poor health caused by worry, I found a piece of writing by late Madiba, Nelson Mandela. According to him, faith is the ability to trust in the unknown, see the invisible and believe in the unknown. He believes that if we have faith, we will have fewer problems.
You don’t have to be bothered, worried and running around at an insane pace. It isn’t the magnitude of the problem or the pace at which things are moving in our lives. We need a state of rest and ultimately inner peace.
I think it is helpful to accept that none of us have it all together or have our situations completely figured out. I want us to take a step back from our day to day responsibility and examine how we are living.
Finally, I went back to one of my all time favourites “His grace is sufficient for me” and I found rest
In Matthew 11:28-30 Jesus says
Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light."
The idea is that His yoke fits us all. It’s agreeable. It works. When we live life God’s way, the burden is light. I know that without spiritual reserve, the yoke of life gets real heavy.
In Exodus 33, Moses and the Lord are discussing the issue of going into the Promised Land.
The LORD replied, "My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest." Then Moses said to him, "If your Presence does not go with us, do not send us up from here. Exodus 33:14-15 (NIV)
In Exodus 3, God’s presence wasn’t enough for Moses. In Exodus 33, God’s presence was all that mattered to Moses.
It would have sounded nice if God said “My presence will go with you and I will give you success.” That’s what makes logical sense. Or “my presence will go with you and I will give you protection, prosperity, and influence.”
But God says, “My presence will go with you, and I will give you REST.”
What does it mean to rest physically?
Rest means I stop. Rest acknowledges that I have limits. Rest is about being, not doing. Rest sets aside striving and producing. Rest is quiet. Rest is relaxing. Rest is about creating space and time to refill.
Jesus describes himself appropriately. He says, “I am gentle and humble in heart.” When you are burdened down, you don’t need a taskmaster. You need HELP. You need someone gentle and caring. This is where Christ comes in handy.
His yoke could be easy and His burden could be light in our situation. Could it be possible to find the kind of rest for your soul that leads you to say, genuinely, “Jesus is enough?”
I have been thinking a great deal about my experience at Reconciliation this past Saturday. I felt an intense and unexplainable urge to go and confess my sins when I woke up that morning. I try to go every six weeks or so, but this was no routine visit to the priest for me. I needed to unburden myself of the numerous venial sins I had committed since I last participated in this Sacrament.
Purest Gold: God's Refining Fire in our Lives »
After salvation, many young Christians wonder if there's anything more to their newfound faith than just the security blanket of "being a Christian." Time and time again, God shows himself as a "refiner," and our lives are as gold. God started leading me in this study to understand what He was doing in my life, as well as in the lives of others.
Picking up my pen to write this column, I couldn’t imagine how time flies. Since the last publication of this column I have gone through a lot, especially the loss of my dear mother to whom I dedicate this article. Not only her, but seems I lost a whole generation of my close family.
How to Achieve Business Excellence »
“Do you see a man who excels in his work? He will stand before Kings; He will not stand before unknown men.” Proverbs 22:29
Spiritual Development for our Youth »
Most of us youth in today's fast moving world are easily thrown off by difficulties and worries.
The theme of conversion is a thread that runs all through Lent, but conversion takes on different aspects throughout the phases of Lent. The first two and a half weeks focused on the interior turning of hearts; the liturgy urges the faithful to reflect and examine consciences thoroughly.
Saint Josephine Bakhita »
Feast Day: February 8
Patron Saint Of: Sudan
Saint Josephine Margaret Bakhita was born around 1869 in the village of Olgossa in the Darfur region of Sudan. She was a member of the Daju people and her uncle was a tribal chief. Due to her family lineage, she grew up happy and relatively prosperous, saying that as a child, she did not know suffering.
Catholics Must Fast More Intensely This Lent»
The Norbertine Canons of St. Michael's Abbey have created this digital Lenten retreat so that you can journey through this holy season alongside them. If you want to have one of your best Lenten seasons yet, join us in our Lenten Program "The Great Fast" - https://theabbotscircle.com/the-great-fast-join
When Your Faith Is Put to the Test - Bishop Barron's Sunday Sermon»
Friends, we come now to the Second Sunday of Lent, and we’re on both dangerous and very holy ground with the first reading from the twenty-second chapter of Genesis. The ancient Israelites referred to it as the “Akedah,” which means the “binding”: Abraham binds and is ready to sacrifice Isaac at God’s command.
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