“I Will See You Again”
Some
of his disciples spoke to one another. They said, "What does he mean by
saying, 'In a little while, you will no longer see me. Then after a little
while, you will see me'? And what does he mean by saying, 'I am going to the Father'?"
They kept asking, "What does he mean by 'a little while'? We don't
understand what he is saying."
Jesus saw that they
wanted to ask him about those things. So he said to them, "Are you asking
one another what I meant? Didn't you understand when I said, 'In a little
while, you will no longer see me. Then after a little while, you will see me'?
What I'm about to tell you is true. You will cry and be full of sorrow while
the world is full of joy. You will be sad, but your sadness will turn into joy.
"A woman
giving birth to a baby has pain. This is because her time to give birth has
come. But when her baby is born, she forgets the pain. She forgets because she
is so happy that a baby has been born into the world.
"That's the way
it is with you. Now it's your time to be sad. But I will see you again. Then
you will be full of joy. And no one will take your joy away.
"When that day
comes, you will no longer ask me for anything. What I'm about to tell you is
true. My Father will give you anything you ask for in my name. Until now you
have not asked for anything in my name. Ask, and you will receive what you ask
for. Then your joy will be complete.
John 16:17-24
Some
people are blessed with cheerful dispositions. Some are not. We do need to
remember that joy is one of the gifts Jesus promised to His followers. And we
need to resist any tendency to let sadness dominate our emotional lives.
Ask
the Lord to help let us look beyond our sorrowful circumstances and encourage
our hearts by the vision of joy that awaits us.
Joy is a fruit of the Spirit that’s always in season.
Our Daily Bread -