Learn from Me – Memorial of Saint Ambrose, Bishop and Doctor of the Church

Wednesday of the Second Week of Advent

Memorial of Saint Ambrose, Bishop and Doctor of the Church

Matthew 11:28-30

Jesus said to the crowds:

“Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart; and you will find rest for yourselves.

For my yoke is easy, and my burden light.”

Opening Prayer: Jesus, it is an honor to be yoked to you, to know that I bear no cross in this life alone. I imagine that when Simon of Cyrene took his place to help carry your cross to Calvary you found relief and “rest”–relief that you were not alone and perhaps even a physical break. Help me to be open to your desire to share that experience of relief and rest with me.

Encountering Christ:

1. Come to Me: Sometimes our days can be difficult and our ordinary work can feel like a chore. But what makes labor different for a Christian is that we have direct access to strength through Christ. When we feel the burden of life and lift it up to Jesus, we can truly experience a spiritual “rest.” We also rejoice, knowing that we participate in the passion of Our Lord and he gives it meaning: Salvifici Doloris 14, 18.
2. Learn from Me: Jesus tells us that he is meek and humble of heart and that we should learn from him. Meekness is defined as being righteous, humble, teachable, and patient under suffering, willing to follow gospel teachings. We see all of these attributes in Jesus when we turn to the Gospels for reading and reflection. He is teaching us how to be meek as we spend time with him in prayer. May we continue to develop this habit of prayerfully reading the Gospels to be transformed and to draw incomparable inspiration for our daily lives.
3. Easy and Light: When two people carry a load together the burden is lightened for both. Ecclesiastes 4:12 reminds us, “Where one alone may be overcome, two together can resist. A three-ply cord is not easily broken.” We are not meant to suffer alone. When we take our burdens to Jesus, he often answers our prayers by inspiring our Christian community to step in to ease our pain. We are called to be “other Christs” to our friends, neighbors, coworkers, and family.

Conversing with Christ: Jesus, I entrust the burden of my heart to you and in return I take your yoke upon my shoulders by giving of myself as an offering for souls, knowing that you give my little sufferings supernatural meaning.

Resolution: Lord, today, by your grace, I will journal about the burden of my heart and entrust it to you, and will ask you to show me one way I can ease someone else’s burden.

For Further Reflection: Check out The Better Part to help you spend 10 minutes reading and reflecting on a Gospel passage.

Marjorie Davin is a lay member of Regnum Christi of 21 years who has served as director of the Women’s Section in the Washington, D.C., area. She and her husband just celebrated their jubilee anniversary of 25 years and are the parents of four adult children.