My Soul Yearns for You” by Beth DeCristofaro
When your judgment dawns upon the earth, the world's inhabitants learn justice. O LORD, you mete out peace to us, for it is you who have accomplished all we have done. Isaiah 26:9, 12)
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." (Matthew 11:29-30)
Piety
My soul yearns for you in the night,
yes, my spirit within me keeps vigil for you
yes, my spirit within me keeps vigil for you
(Isaiah 26:9)
Study
As a (very, very young!) child of the 60’s, I grew up distrusting authority. On TV I watched protests against a murderous war, fire hoses turned on peaceful Black civil rights marchers, and the lead up to a President caught lying and obstructing justice. In church, the punishment was meted out more frequently than peace. I sat in detention because a boy snatched the beanie off my head at Catholic school, throwing it onto a roof; fidgeting too much during Mass would result in Sister whacking heads with a ruler; and hellfire would reign down on any Catholic teen who dared to commit French-kissing (what was that anyway?) Later, after receiving an MA in Pastoral Ministry, it was difficult to find a parish who knew what that meant or how to invest in a woman professional. All this led me to have a difficult time with the image of God as supreme being or king – authority.
It has taken much prayer, study, discernment, and acknowledgment of my unbelief to realize how different is God’s authority from the civil. In the notes on the reading from Isaiah, we learn that God’s authority is justice and adheres fully to the covenant made with Abraham. Times were tough due to foreign dominance over the Chosen people but God’s promise to be their God still held. “This text is a mixture of praise for the salvation that will take place, a confession of Judah’s inability to achieve deliverance on its own, and earnest prayer that God may quickly bring about the longed-for salvation.”[i]
Jesus’ words are in accord with these and other Scriptures. As he turned always to God for the source of his nourishment and action, Jesus offers to be that source for any who believe. This verse comes at the end of a passage dealing with unbelief and the unwillingness of temple leaders to accept Jesus’ authority given by God. Unlike civil authority which is often sidetracked by personal or national gain/power, God’s authority is the root of all of our successes and our very being.
Action
A yoke allows two oxen to equally share the burden of labor. Jesus offers to share our labor, our struggle, our failures and, of course, our joys and hopes.
In what ways do I still resist turning over completely his end of the yoke in order to share in his peace? Why do I resist freedom? How do I restrict others from experiencing God’s freedom?
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