Daily Gospel Reflection for May 22, 2020

Reflection by Virginia Pillars

Today's Gospel: John 16:20-23

Sometimes, life just doesn’t make sense: A beloved baby dies, a faithful person suffers from an incurable and debilitating illness, or a loved one battles cancer. Often, we scream “Why?” as contractions of pain overshadow our bliss.

When these things happened to me, I wept. I mourned. I asked, “Why? As my world stopped, it seemed the rest of the world continued their busy lives.

I grieved alone. During those dark days, I turned to prayer and the Scriptures. I clung to His promise in today’s reading:

“But I will see you again and your hearts will rejoice and no one will take your joy away from you.”

Jesus told us grief won’t last forever. Joy. I would experience joy again. And on the day when I meet Jesus face to face, my questions, my whys won’t be important anymore. I remembered that I see life only through my human capacity. I can’t understand “why” because I can’t see it from God’s view.

I compare to when I inspect the underside of the quilts I make. If I look at the wrong side, I only see the seams with raveled edges and dangling threads. I see the mistakes. I take comfort knowing when I see the patchwork quilt that’s my life as Jesus sees it, I’ll see a beautiful blend of lights and darks in a perfect pattern.

Until that day when every tear gets wiped away, I hang on to His promise and ask Jesus to walk beside me each day. I can ask things in His name.

[Tweet "When the labor pains of life strike, I plan to focus on the #joy to come. By @virginiapillars"]

Ponder:

How can I direct my thoughts to Jesus during the labor pains of life?

Pray:

Jesus, thank you for the promise of life to come. I ask for your grace to live with joy always.

Copyright 2020 Virginia Pillars