Thoughts to Ponder from John 16:16-20

John 16:16-20 (ESV)

Your Sorrow Will Turn into Joy

¹⁶ “A little while, and you will see me no longer; and again a little while, and you will see me.” ¹⁷ So some of his disciples said to one another, “What is this that he says to us, ‘A little while, and you will not see me, and again a little while, and you will see me’; and, ‘because I am going to the Father’?” ¹⁸ So they were saying, “What does he mean by ‘a little while’? We do not know what he is talking about.” ¹⁹ Jesus knew that they wanted to ask him, so he said to them, “Is this what you are asking yourselves, what I meant by saying, ‘A little while and you will not see me, and again a little while and you will see me’? ²⁰ Truly, truly, I say to you, you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice. You will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will turn into joy.

In each of our lives, there are people we miss terribly. Some have moved away, some have died, and some have just lost touch with us. In each case, losing their friendship can be painful. So we do what we can to recall them: We look at their pictures, we read their letters, and we try to remember all the great times we had with them. But there’s no substitute for actually being with them. At times we would give anything to have them beside us.

The apostles would feel a similar pain when Jesus was taken away from them. After seeing him die on the cross, they would weep and mourn, just as Jesus prophesied (John 16:22). But they would have much more than memories to get them by. They would be eyewitnesses to his resurrection. Their joy would indeed be complete once they had seen him risen from the dead and understood their mission to proclaim his gospel to the ends of the earth.

As the spiritual descendants of the apostles, we can have the same joy they did. But we’re also human, and we can’t hide from reality. When some great misfortune occurs, Jesus can seem very distant, almost as distant as he did to the apostles after the crucifixion. The Lord has promised us he will return again, but what about present trials? And what about the evil that is in the world? All these things can cause us to wonder whether God has abandoned us.

The answer is, he’s never left us! Jesus is not only with us, he’s within us, by the power of his Holy Spirit. If you are struggling right now, call on the Spirit for whatever you need: healing, peace, wisdom, even joy! Cast your burdens on the Lord, and remember the words of St. Paul: “Neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor present things, nor future things, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor any other creature will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:38-39).

Lord, may I see your face, especially in the midst of my trials. When the world tells me to give up, may I hear your voice speaking words of hope and encouragement. Amen.

From The Word Among Us, May 21st, 2009