In a diary entry found after her death she had written: ‘Within me there is a spring that is very deep. And in that spring is God. Sometimes I am unable to reach it, more often it is covered with stone and sand; in that moment God is buried, so one must dig him up again.’ This courageous Jewess captured perfectly the deep ache in the human heart for God, which St. Augustine also described: ‘Our hearts, O God, were created for you and in you alone will we find rest.’
Today’s Gospel contains some of the most comforting and consoling words ever spoken. But who could speak them except God – Jesus of Nazareth, God made man? They reveal that through him, with him and in him, in the unity of the Blessed Trinity, we can enjoy God’s rest and peace. No matter who we are, life, let’s face it, can be hard, difficult and burdensome. However, in the quiet of prayer, in the oasis of praying before the Blessed Sacrament, in the retreat from the world, when we read God’s Word, we create the opportunity for God to comfort and console us. Truly, only in prayer can we be comforted and consoled by the Holy Spirit and experience Jesus, gentle and humble in heart, who leads us to rest in the spring of God’s grace.
Saint Mother Teresa of Calcutta said: ‘Prayer is the test of everything; prayer is also the source of everything; prayer is the driving force of everything; prayer is the director of everything. If our prayer is right everything else is right. For in prayer, we find peace and rest for our souls.’ Finding time for prayer is the challenge we face. However, this much is true: the more we pray, the easier it is to pray. The less we pray, the harder it is. And the easier it becomes, the more we will pray.
Lord, today I ask for the grace to be renewed and refreshed by your grace so that I may keep my eyes fixed on heaven, praising you for the gift of your Son in the power of the Holy Spirit.
