There are times in life when things really seem dreary. There seems to be no end to the drudgery of every day life. You go to work, come home, get some sleep only to repeat the pattern the very next day. The sameness that often times brings a sense of security to life can also tend to bring a sense of depression. Nothing seems to matter much. Time passes inexorably by. It makes you wonder where God is in all of this thing we call life. Where is the joy that we Christians are told that we have a right to feel by virtue of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ?
It is interesting to me at how quickly we can lose our proper perspective on life. Most of us have been blessed with so much that to worry about our day-to-day needs is an exercise that we are very unfamiliar with. We have an abundance of food to eat. Every day we return to that roof over our heads into the warm shelter of home. We do not fear for our lives when going to the market for some bread or milk or any other commodity our modern day markets have to offer. We even stave off Mother Nature with our central air conditioning and heat. Then why is it that so many people are so empty inside? Why is it that they walk around with invisible burdens on their shoulders that weigh them down, often into the depths of despair?
I believe it is because we have become addicted to excitement. We love the extreme. Look at the shows on television that pull in the big ratings. They are all reality shows. They call them reality shows but one has to wonder just what reality are they representing? The extremes represented in these shows are just a way to stimulate an over-stimulated audience. They are based upon nothing that even resembles real. They are all fantasy and unattainable fantasies at that.
We all have our burdens in life. That cannot be avoided. But we do have recourse. We do have someone to whom we can turn in these dark moments of life to lift us up and help us regain the proper perspective. Jesus once said, "Come to me all you who labor and are heavy laden and I will give you rest." What an invitation! How many of us do not welcome this comforting message into our daily lives? Jesus will give us rest! What exactly does this mean?
In this passage, we come face-to-face with the compassionate Jesus. In Jesus, regardless of what life brings us, regardless of what we bring upon ourselves, we can always find the love that the human heart craves. As long as we repent of our sinfulness His love is always ours for the asking. Have you ever felt friendless and forlorn? Have you ever felt the sting of rejection? Have you ever felt the scorn of others? So has the Savior of the world! He understands our nature, our feelings, and the complicated emotions that come with being human. Our problems will not disappear magically. Our insecurities will continue to matter and influence us no matter what we do. Our lives of day-to-day drudgery will move on but we must remember that we do have recourse to a sanctuary that will never fail--the Sacred Heart of Jesus!
Talk with Him daily. Pray always and seek Him out in the eyes of one another. He has promised us that He will be with us until the end of days. (c.f. Mt 28:20) He is our eternal comfort. He is our perpetual guide. He is the recourse of our lives.
