Most assuredly, I say to you that you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice; and you will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will be turned into joy. John 16:20 NKJV

Modern medicine emphasizes the importance of skin-to-skin contact between a newborn and its mother following the birth of that child. This skin-to-skin contact has shown to be a tremendous benefit to both the mother and the child. What a special time! I’ve never given birth, I will never know what that’s like. As a kid, I counted myself lucky to be born a guy knowing I would never have to do that. Being a man I cannot speak with authority on the topic and I must walk lightly when talking about it since I will never understand the pains that a woman goes through when giving birth. How in the world do they do it!? From intense pain sometimes hours of labor, to being a mother who holds their child in the moments just after, what an intense turn of events. Sorrow and pain, into joy, childbirth is exactly how Jesus described that transition of sorrow into joy. Does life feel like a battle, like the pain is overwhelming? Jesus promises that sorrow will turn into joy. 

A woman, when she is in labor, has sorrow because her hour has come; but as soon as she has given birth to the child, she no longer remembers the anguish, for joy that a human being has been born into the world. John 16:21 NKJV

In John 16 Jesus is talking with his disciples, telling them that He will have to leave them to go to the Father. He understands that this will bring them sorrow and pain. The 12 disciples are all men, but Jesus had women in the group as well. As Jesus is telling them that he is going to leave he is telling them that this pain and sorrow will be much like childbirth, there will be sorrow but the outcome of his leaving and return will make everything okay. I can just imagine the women around Jesus as they nodded their heads fully knowing what that pain is like but also knowing what that joy is like. 

One thing, among a large list of things, that I love about Jesus is that he accepts the reality of human life. “Most assuredly, I say to you that you will weep and lament…” John 16:20a NJKV There will be sorrow. Have you ever tried to ignore the pain and sorrow in your life? Has that worked out for you? When I was a kid I used to get terrible mosquito bites about once every 2 years. My house was right next to a wetland and the mosquitos were terrible. I cannot tell you any scientific reasoning but my 10-year-old brain was convinced that once every two years I would become vulnerable to the mosquitos and get tons and tons of bites. I would itch and be miserable for days at a time, but the next year I didn’t seem to itch. I would get bit but nothing would happen. I told myself I was immunized that year from the previous year. But going through that process was the worst. I would complain over and over again to my parents. My house smelled of melaleuca and other natural remedies to try and keep the itching down. I couldn’t do anything about it! My brother and sister use to tell me to just ignore it and the itching would go away. 

“Just ignore the pain and sorrow it’ll go away.” Have you ever been told that? “It’ll go away with time.” These kinds of so-called “comfort” don’t really provide comfort. The pain and sorrow always seem to come back. Jesus knew this. Jesus understood that our pain and sorrow will come. Modern slang will call this “being in your feels.” If you don’t understand ask a Gen- Z kid they can explain.  When pain and sorrow come Jesus does not want us to ignore them. Instead, Jesus wants us to accept them and look forward to a time when this pain and sorrow will turn into joy. 

And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.” Rev. 21:4 NKJV 

God has promised that there is an end to this suffering, to this pain and sorrow. God has promised to be the one to wipe away every tear from our eyes. God knows that we will go through the pain of this world. That this sorrow will threaten to consume our every thought. But he has promised that after the pain and sorrow like a mother holding their child for the first time. There will be joy, pure joy with Him.