Scripture: St. John 16:16-24
Jesus tells his disciples, “In a little while you will see me no more, and then after a little while you will see me.”
His disciples said to one another, “What does he mean by ‘a little while’?”
Sorrow and joy are like a woman giving birth to a child. There is pain and grief in the birth process, but that turns to joy when she holds that child. Seeing its beauty, she forgets the pain and celebrates the joy of the child. When Jesus spoke these words to his disciples, He was looking beyond the moment in time to when they and all others will see Him in the heavenly kingdom.
There may be a time when it looks as if our Christian faith offers us little comfort and hope as we struggle with this life. Experiences like losing a favorite job or the stress of raising children and dealing with their behavior or even death of a precious loved one like a spouse, parent, or child. We must always remember the struggles of our Lord, who was physically human and yet fully divine. As an example, in John 11, when Jesus stood at His friend Lazarus’ tomb, He wept. We will likewise face many of these difficult issues in our life.
I will never forget the young lady in the Columbine shooting who was asked, “Are you a Christian?” Without hesitating, she said, “Yes!” The shooter responded, “Well, go to Him now,” and he shot and killed her.
Do you believe in our Lord regardless what life is throwing at you right now? It is in deep sorrow and stress that one should look to the Lord for help and guidance. I believe that there are two precious things about our Christian faith that we must never forget.
- Jesus said, “I will never leave you or forsake you,” in Hebrews 13:5 and Deuteronomy 31:6.
- Our love for Him is of our free will. He gave us a choice yet some people here on earth live their life independent of the presence of Jesus
We must reach out to Him with praise and prayer and for hope and guidance in regards to whatever the situation might be. God listens to our prayers, but we should pray like Jesus did that His will be done, not ours. Often we are like little children in a candy store; we want that candy right now, but our parents say, “No.”
With a new and fresh relationship with our Lord, we can accept whatever answer He gives us to our prayers for the tough situations, for He know what’s best for us. May the sorrows of the moment grant us eternal joy and peace as we hand our whole lives over to Him since He knows best.
Let us pray!
