Rest for our Souls

Half Moon Bay in CA

Rev. Molly F. James, PhD
DFMS Noonday Prayer via Zoom
Feast of Anselm of Canterbury

May God’s Word be spoken. May God’s Word be heard. May that point us to the living Word, who is Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
‘Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, 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.’

I hope our Gospel text resonated for you today. “You will find rest for your souls.” Indeed. I would guess we are all in need of that. I will say that when I pulled up this text for today, I breathed a little deeper. My shoulders dropped a bit. I thought, “Thank you, God. I needed that text today. I needed that reminder. I need to know again that profound truth that we do not bear our burdens alone. Thanks be to God.”

I think there are two important truths for us to hold onto out of today’s readings. First, is that generous reminder in Jesus’ invitation to us that we do not journey alone. I am certainly one who can easily fall into the trap of thinking that I have to do something myself. Sometimes it is because I have high standards, and I don’t think anyone else will meet them. Or sometimes it is because I don’t want to be a burden to someone else. Or sometimes it is because I get stuck thinking that efficiency or results are more important than process. Never mind that I can work myself to exhaustion trying to balance all the spinning plates or complete all the tasks on my own.

Of course, Jesus’ invitation is for us to remember that he walks with us. I also think he is reminding us that the way to do ministry, the way to do life best is in collaboration. “Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me.” Indeed. What can we learn from Jesus? Well, he did not operate alone. He called his disciples to join him. He sent them out two by two, not solo. We are not meant to be solitary heroes. We are meant to be a team. We need each other.

Over and over again, my life experience has shown me that often the best solution to any given challenge is not my idea or my colleague’s idea. It is the version we hammer out together building on each other’s insights and wisdom. Jesus was on to an important truth about how we are meant to do our ministry when he sent the disciples out two by two. Collaboration is a far more life-giving way to minister.

Second, I think the important truth for us is about “rest.” That word shows up twice in just two lines of Scripture. Rest is so important. I don’t know about you all, but I am tired. I am weary. I could use that “rest for my soul” of which Jesus speaks. And as I talked about yesterday as well, in this time it can be truly challenging to do the normal practices that usually work for restoring our souls. We may need to rail and vent about that for a bit. I hope all of us have people in our lives with whom we can have truly honest conversations. Where we can say whatever is on our mind. They will listen with generosity and compassion, because they love us. Then, also because they love us, they will gently remind us that now that we have vented out all our anger and frustration, it might be possible for us to transform the situation. They kindly invite us to be our best selves moving forward, and they keep us from getting stuck in a place of anger and resentment.

So, if you are feeling frustrated, reach out to one of those friends or family members who serves that role for us. Vent. And then move forward.

There is a holy invitation in this time to expand our repertoire of soul restoring practices. An invitation to find new ways to rest, even in the midst of stress, anxiety, and very busy schedules. Those other practices will have their time again. They are not being replaced, only supplemented. Perhaps supplemented by a few minutes of quiet prayer. Or more exercise. Or drinking more water. Or rearranging our work setup to provide a different view or more comfortable way to sit or stand. Perhaps we will take up a new indoor hobby we had always been meaning to try. Whatever it may be, may we find new practices that are life giving and sustaining in this time. May we find small things that give rest for our souls.

May we also find solace and strength in God’s abiding love in our lives. May we give thanks for the companions on the way whose presence sustains us. AMEN.