First reading Zechariah 9:9-10
See now, your king comes humbly to you
The Lord says this:
Rejoice heart and soul, daughter of Zion!
Shout with gladness, daughter of Jerusalem!
See now, your king comes to you;
he is victorious, he is triumphant,
humble and riding on a donkey,
on a colt, the foal of a donkey.
He will banish chariots from Ephraim
and horses from Jerusalem;
the bow of war will be banished.
He will proclaim peace for the nations.
His empire shall stretch from sea to sea,
from the River to the ends of the earth.
Responsorial Psalm 144(145):1-2,8-11,13b-14
I will bless your name for ever, O God my King.
or
Alleluia!
I will give you glory, O God my king,
I will bless your name for ever.
I will bless you day after day
and praise your name for ever.
The Lord is kind and full of compassion,
slow to anger, abounding in love.
How good is the Lord to all,
compassionate to all his creatures.
All your creatures shall thank you, O Lord,
and your friends shall repeat their blessing.
They shall speak of the glory of your reign
and declare your might, O God.
The Lord is faithful in all his words
and loving in all his deeds.
The Lord supports all who fall
and raises all who are bowed down.
Second reading Romans 8:9,11-13
If by the Spirit you put an end to the misdeeds of the body, you will live
Your interests are not in the unspiritual, but in the spiritual, since the Spirit of God has made his home in you. In fact, unless you possessed the Spirit of Christ you would not belong to him, and if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, then he who raised Jesus from the dead will give life to your own mortal bodies through his Spirit living in you.
So then, my brothers, there is no necessity for us to obey our unspiritual selves or to live unspiritual lives. If you do live in that way, you are doomed to die; but if by the Spirit you put an end to the misdeeds of the body you will live.
Gospel Matthew 11:25-30
You have hidden these things from the wise and revealed them to little children
Jesus exclaimed, ‘I bless you, Father, Lord of heaven and of earth, for hiding these things from the learned and the clever and revealing them to mere children. Yes, Father, for that is what it pleased you to do. Everything has been entrusted to me by my Father; and no one knows the Son except the Father, just as no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.
‘Come to me, all you who labour and are overburdened, and I will give you rest. Shoulder my yoke and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. Yes, my yoke is easy and my burden light.’
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A childlike trust
Pope John XXIII used to pray at night God, “I’ve done the best I could in your service this day, Oh Lord. I’m going to bed. It’s your Church. Take care of it!”. This simple prayer of this great saint reveals his childlike trust in God despite his heavy responsibilities. What about us? Are we carrying the heavy burden of anxiety, fear, failure and despair? Listen to what Jesus has to say to us today. “Come to me, all you who labour and are overwhelmed, and I will give you rest”. The good news is that Jesus is never far away from us. He is the first to always come to us and takes the initiative to be with us. In the first reading, the prophet proclaims this good news of God’s nearness with great joy: “Rejoice…See now, your king comes to you…” (1st reading).
Let us go to Jesus and bring to Him the heavy burdens that we carry. Like Pope John XXIII, we say to Him with trust, “Lord, you know. Take care of this situation. Take care of this worry…”. May we receive His presence of love with the trusting heart of a child.
Reflective question:
Do I find my rest in Jesus?
Do I find my rest in Jesus?
Acknowledgment: Reflections are based on “Prayer for Living: The Word of God for Daily Prayer Year A” by Sr Sandra Seow FMVD.
