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Morning Devotion for the Season of Easter

April 21, 2023

Invitatory

If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son: and to the Holy Ghost;

As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be: world without end. Amen.

Reading - Matthew 11:28-30

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

Meditation - Winnie Smith

Surrender is difficult for people addicted to productivity and results. The idea that one can bring one’s stresses and struggles, the weights of life, and leave them with Jesus? That is a difficult concept to understand. “Take my yoke upon you,” Jesus says, “and learn from me…you will find rest for your souls.” Beautiful words, a nice message, but what does it really mean? How are we to offer up our burdens to Jesus? How do we let go of the busy-ness and obligations of our lives?

The first step is recognizing when our burdens are too much to carry. Often we are in over our heads: it is virtually impossible to balance the responsibilities of our personal lives, meet professional expectations, and measure ourselves against the often unattainable standards society has set without losing it. We can feel alone and like failures. It is a nasty combination. But it is in these moments that we most need support.

There is a beautiful prayer in our Morning Prayer liturgy that begins, “Lord Jesus Christ, you stretched out your arms of love on the hard wood of the cross that everyone might come within the reach of your saving embrace.” Arms of love, stretched out so that we might feel Jesus’s embrace. This is the power of Jesus’s life, death, and resurrection. He went to hell - literally - so that we wouldn’t have to. I think the depth of that sacrifice is beyond our comprehension, but Eastertide is a perfect time to reflect on it and on the meaning of resurrection.

The power of the resurrection is the freedom it offers. It is a renewal, a fresh start, a reminder of God’s constant creation and recreation all around us. As cliché as it sounds, Eastertide is when we really can and should practice sharing our burdens with God. When we get that creeping anxiety that keeps us up at night or wakes us up in the morning, that is when God is calling us to share those burdens with Him. It is the time for prayer, for trying to empty ourselves and to lay out to God all of the things that are weighing us down. We may not understand it now, but God offers rest from all of that - we just have to allow Him the chance to provide it.

Prayer

Lord Jesus Christ, you stretched out your arms of love on the hard wood of the cross that everyone might come within the reach of your saving embrace: So clothe us in your Spirit that we, reaching forth our hands in love, may bring those who do not know you to the knowledge and love of you; for the honor of your Name. Amen.

-         BCP p. 100