Sermon for Proper 9, Year A, July 9, 2023

Here is today's sermon, Proper 9, Year A, July 9, 2023. It is based on Matthew 11:16-19, 25-30, "Come to me all who are weary and heavy laden and I will refresh you. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light". Instead of seeing our burdens as some sort of imposition from a Divinity which is alien and withdrawn from us far away, I use the image of the yoke to show that Jesus is present and active among our burdens and challenges. I extend this to Romans 7:15-25a, where I suggest that much of our suffering is from our desire to have a life and circumstances very different from our present situation, thus leading to frustration and disappointment. Instead, by following the spiritual rule of "wholehearted cooperation with the inevitable", we may find serenity even in the misdt of our challenging circumstances.