Aren’t these verses in today’s first reading beautiful?
“O Lord, we look to you; Your name and your title are the desire of our souls. My soul yearns for you in the night, yes, my spirit within me keeps vigil for you.”
For those of us who are night owls, these verses are especially beautiful. There is something beautiful about the stillness of the night, when everything is calm and quiet, and the day is done. For some, the last hour or so of the evening is the only ‘alone time’ they are able to find in their lives. A person needs some ‘alone time’ to reconnect with one’s self, but also with God. The last hour of the day can be a time to unwind from all the demands of the day, and is a perfect time for prayer and reflection. Our deepest emotions and thoughts seem closer to the surface late at night, or just upon wakening in the early morning hours. We are more receptive to the Holy Spirit at work in our lives, when we are the most relaxed and alone.
Countless people have gazed up at the moon and the night stars over the centuries though, and have encountered such a deep sense of God’s presence, etched into, and throughout all of creation. The masterpiece of the universe has such an comprehensible beauty, and is only visible to the naked eye at night.
Silence, solitude, beauty, prayer and reflection are paths to God. He seeks us in the stillness of the night, as much as we seek Him. We are never alone, cloaked in the visible proof of His love that lights up the universe. The beauty of the universe is like love letters that God left behind for all of mankind to read, in order to discover Him for ourselves. Beauty draws us into the depths of the essence of God. That is why art has been such a major part of our religion for centuries.
In the gospel today Jesus said:
“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.”
If you remember, Jesus went off by himself pretty often to pray at night too. He spent the entire night in prayer before he choose his twelve apostles.
“Now during those days he went out to the mountain to pray; and he spent the night in prayer to God.” ~ Luke 6:12
“And after he had dismissed the crowds, he went up the mountain by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone.” ~ Matthew 14: 23
Jesus is telling us to learn from him in the gospel today, and perhaps one of the things we might pay attention to, is his need for silence, solitude and prayer. We have need of the same things too, if we seek healing, guidance, peace and friendship with the Lord. It is so simple, to set everything aside and spend some quiet time away (even at home), in solitude and prayer, and yet, it is the most difficult thing to actually do sometimes because of the demands of our daily life.
Maybe that last chore of the day could wait tonight? In order to carve out some time to regain a sense of who we are, and who we belong to. Jesus must be at the very center of our lives, or else everything in life is so much harder. With Christ by our side though, our days and our nights are a lot more peaceful.
Daily Mass Readings:
Isaiah 26: 7-9, 12, 16-19 / Psalm 102 / Matthew 11: 28-30
