Daily Catholic Mass Readings for December 10, 2025
First Reading: Isaiah 40.25-31
25"To whom will you compare me? Or who is my equal?" says the Holy One.26Lift your eyes and look to the heavens: Who created all these? He who brings out the starry host one by one, and calls them each by name. Because of his great power and mighty strength, not one of them is missing.27Why do you say, O Jacob, and complain, O Israel, "My way is hidden from the LORD; my cause is disregarded by my God"?28Do you not know? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom.29He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak.30Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall;31but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.
Psalm 103
1Praise the LORD, O my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name.2Praise the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits-3who forgives all your sins and heals all your diseases,4who redeems your life from the pit and crowns you with love and compassion,5who satisfies your desires with good things so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's.6The LORD works righteousness and justice for all the oppressed.7He made known his ways to Moses, his deeds to the people of Israel:8The LORD is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love.9He will not always accuse, nor will he harbor his anger forever;10he does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities.11For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him;12as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us.13As a father has compassion on his children, so the LORD has compassion on those who fear him;14for he knows how we are formed, he remembers that we are dust.15As for man, his days are like grass, he flourishes like a flower of the field;16the wind blows over it and it is gone, and its place remembers it no more.17But from everlasting to everlasting the LORD's love is with those who fear him, and his righteousness with their children's children-18with those who keep his covenant and remember to obey his precepts.19The LORD has established his throne in heaven, and his kingdom rules over all.20Praise the LORD, you his angels, you mighty ones who do his bidding, who obey his word.21Praise the LORD, all his heavenly hosts, you his servants who do his will.22Praise the LORD, all his works everywhere in his dominion. Praise the LORD, O my soul.
Gospel: Matthew 11.28-30
Sermon
Today's readings offer profound comfort to souls burdened by the weariness of life. In the first reading, Isaiah reminds a people feeling abandoned and without hope that the Lord is the eternal God, who created all things and never grows weary or faint. He is incomparable in power and wisdom, and He promises to renew the strength of those who hope in Him, enabling them to soar like eagles, run without tiring, and walk without faltering. The Gospel presents Jesus extending a tender invitation: "Come to me, all you who labor and have been burdened, and I will refresh you." He offers His yoke, which is sweet, and His burden, which is light, promising rest for our souls if we learn from His meek and humble heart.
Both readings speak directly to our human experience of exhaustion and overwhelm, whether from physical labor, emotional stress, or spiritual striving. The exiles in Babylon felt forgotten by God, much like we can feel today when facing insurmountable problems or prolonged suffering. Jesus' invitation in Matthew directly addresses those weighed down by the rigid interpretations of the Law and the general anxieties of existence. He doesn't dismiss our burdens but offers a divine exchange: our heavy, self-imposed or world-imposed loads for His gentle guidance and grace. The connection is clear: the God of Isaiah, who renews the weary, is the very God who, in Jesus, invites us to find ultimate rest and refreshment.
To apply these sacred words to our daily lives means to consciously bring our anxieties, our frustrations, our feelings of inadequacy or spiritual dryness, to the Lord. Instead of trying to carry everything on our own strength, we are called to actively "hope in the Lord," trusting in His inexhaustible power and wisdom, rather than our own limited resources. Coming to Jesus means entrusting Him with what weighs us down, accepting His meekness and humility as a model for our own hearts, and embracing His teachings as a "light burden" that leads to true freedom and peace. It is in this surrender and reliance on Him that we truly find rest for our souls and renewed strength to navigate life's challenges, rising above them with a spirit revitalized by divine grace.