and see who has created these things.” Isaiah 40 My To Do list is filled – always. I revise it, add to it and proudly cross things off of it. I have perfected a system that combines my lists on my smart phone and allows me to change priorities if I need to. But it was only recently, as I prayed with my To Do list, that I realized that if the mythical day came when I finally finished every item on my list … I would think of more things to add. I work in a whirl and do too many things. What suffers, in my quest to be ever more productive, is contemplation. Appreciating. Gratefulness. Isaiah’s words call us to pay attention. We are all busy and our lives are full. But Isaiah’s beautiful words this Advent, remind us that God really does call each one of us by name. God is there for us in our distress, offering “strength to the fainting” and vigor for the weak. We are asked to lift up our eyes to pay attention to the world around us – the people around us and the joy of nature. It is in such moments of quietness that we will be restored with hope. But hope can’t arrive if we don’t take the time to open our eyes, listen and ask God for the healing and hope that is offered to us with such love. In today’s gospel, Jesus invites us to come if we are weary and discouraged. Come if we think we are too busy to stop; if our To Do list seems endless. Today’s readings remind us to slow down and hear Jesus offer us “rest. For my yoke is easy, and my burden light.” |