Wednesday of the Second Week in Advent
The bane of our spiritual lives is the horrible thought that we have to handle all of life’s challenges and battles on our own. This stems from the sin of pride, which is a conviction that we are to take care of ourselves and depend on no one else, and that we are more than qualified to do so. But it’s a lie, right? We make ourselves sick trying to rely on our own strength. We may be strong people, but there’s a limit to what we can do, and in fact, a limit to what we are supposed to do.
Dependence on God lets God take us where he wants us to be, which is always better for us in the long run. And Advent is all about letting God do this new thing in us. Advent calls us to step aside and let God be God, and depend on his strength, and let him answer our prayers the way he knows they should be answered.
That’s what Isaiah has for us in our first reading. God has created all things, and by his might and the strength of his power, all things are held in being. God’s strength is infinitely greater than the strength of the strongest young person. Indeed, we are told “Though young men faint and grow weary, and youths stagger and fall, They that hope in the LORD will renew their strength… They will run and not grow weary, walk and not grow faint.” And that is the gentle yoke that Jesus offers us in the Gospel reading. His yoke is easy and his burden is light. All we need to do is to put down our own yokes and take up his.
Advent calls us to rely on the strength of God in our own personal struggles and those in the world around us. We can’t do it on our own. We’re not supposed to.
Maranatha! Come, Lord Jesus!
