Day 108 | Sunday, 5 July 2020

Day 108, July 5, 2020

Today is the first Sunday in the Month, if you would like to receive Holy Communion respond to me.  I will come around either late morning or early afternoon.

The assigned readings for this 5th Sunday after Pentecost are: Genesis 24:34-38, 42-29, 58-67; Psalm 72; Romans 7:15-25a and Matthew 11:16-19, 25-39.

Matthew 11:16-19 CEB This generation
16 “To what will I compare this generation? It is like a child sitting in the marketplaces calling out to others, 17 ‘We played the flute for you and you didn’t dance. We sang a funeral song and you didn’t mourn.’
18 For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon.’
19 Yet the Human One came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Look, a glutton and a drunk, a friend of tax collectors and sinners.’ But wisdom is proved to be right by her works.”

Matthew 11:25-30 The Father and the Son
25 At that time Jesus said, “I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you’ve hidden these things from the wise and intelligent and have shown them to babies.
26 Indeed, Father, this brings you happiness.
27 “My Father has handed all things over to me. No one knows the Son except the Father. And nobody knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son wants to reveal him.
28 “Come to me, all you who are struggling hard and carrying heavy loads, and I will give you rest.
29 Put on my yoke and learn from me. I’m gentle and humble. And you will find rest for yourselves.
30 My yoke is easy to bear, and my burden is light.”

Here we are on this Sunday right after celebrating our country’s independence.  We are also dealing with daily cases of the Corona virus numbering around 50,000 or above per day.  The deaths in the USA are around 130,000.  We are carrying a heavy load.  Our burdens center around the concerns over this Virus and the trail of difficulty it has brought with it.  We must be so very careful with our contacts.  We wonder when will we be able to visit family members?  Judy and I have canceled our presence at our grandson’s wedding in August.  I was supposed to officiate but traveling to West Virginia is no longer an option for us.

Jesus tells us to come to him with our struggles.  Come to him with those concerns that are weighing heavily on our hearts and minds.  Come to Jesus with those heavy burdens that drag us down.  Isn’t it wonderful to read and even hear the words – Jesus is gentle, Jesus is humble, also?  Isn’t it great to know that in Jesus we will find rest? 
Jesus says his burden is light.  Verse 28, “Yoke” is a common metaphor for the Torah; Jesus’ yoke (his interpretation of the law) is “light”.

Holy God, your Son has promised that he will help us carry our burdens.  We need to feel that help especially during these hard times as we continue to deal with the COVIS-19 pandemic.  Lord, fill us with your gentleness.  Lord, give us rest for our spirits.  Continue to give us strength, comfort and guidance.  Lord, hear our prayers.  Amen
​
Today: what burdens are you trying to carry by yourself?