Friday 27 May 2022

Today is Friday the 27th of May, in the sixth week of Easter.

The monks of Pluscarden Abbey sing Psalm (94): “Come ring out our joy to the Lord, hail the God who saves us”, it says, and, “Come in, let us bow and bend low, let us kneel before the God who made us, for he is our God and we the people who belong to his pasture, the flock that is led by his hand."
(Lyrics currently unavailable)

Today’s reading is from the Gospel of John.
John 16.20-23a
Very truly, I tell you, you will weep and mourn, but the world will rejoice; you will have pain, but your pain will turn into joy. When a woman is in labour, she has pain, because her hour has come. But when her child is born, she no longer remembers the anguish because of the joy of having brought a human being into the world. So you have pain now; but I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you. On that day you will ask nothing of me. Very truly, I tell you, if you ask anything of the Father in my name, he will give it to you.

Jesus promises his disciples that the pain of separation will eventually be overcome by the joy of reunion. They will see him again. He says this is like the joy of new life that follows the pain of giving birth.
What is currently causing me pain?
I share this with Jesus now.
Where in my life is there joy?
I share this with Jesus too.
I ponder how my pain and joy are linked in Jesus.

‘No-one will take your joy from you’.
As I listen again, I hold these words of Jesus deep within me.

In these last few moments, I thank God for always being present around me and within me – in pain and in joy.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.