Recently, grief was something I significantly walked through for about 4 years. It came because of brokenness, betrayal, and loss in a variety of circumstances. At the time, it seemed a little like the old joke: I finally saw the light at the end of the tunnel, but it turned out to be a train. The next thing would happen right as it felt like we were getting our heads above water from the previous thing. It was not an easy season by any stretch of the imagination. I wish I could say I stayed at peace and joyful despite my circumstances, awaiting a future hope throughout that season. I did not, but I did learn and grow a lot through it. I learned about lament. I came to truly feel and believe the idea that God gives beauty for ashes, as mentioned in Isaiah 61:3. While I would never choose the circumstances we walked through for myself or those affected, I have come to see the little glimmers of God at work in some of the ruins.  

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Today’s passage comes from a section of the Gospel of John typically described as the “Upper Room Discourse,” which includes John 13-17. These chapters cover Jesus’ teachings to the disciples during the Last Supper. Jesus has told them how He will suffer and die, how He will leave them but return to them, and to expect difficulty. Probably not the type of uplifting speech you want to hear when your Lord is about to leave you. But Jesus includes the promise in our key verse, that while they will weep and mourn, it’s temporary. The disciple’s sorrow will turn to joy. Jesus goes on in the rest of chapter 16 to relate the experience to childbirth. A mother feels great pain temporarily but forgets it as she holds her new baby. Our present suffering is nothing compared to our future reward, as the Apostle Paul tells us in Romans 8:18.  

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Following Jesus has never guaranteed anyone a smooth and comfortable ride. Jesus does promise that He will make all things right eventually. We’re able to have peace and joy in difficulties because we have a future hope in Christ. Jesus doesn’t minimize our sorrow or rush us past it. He names it plainly: you will weep and mourn. But He also invites us to trust that sorrow is not the final word. Joy may feel distant or even unimaginable in the middle of pain, yet Jesus assures us that God is still at work, even when all we can see are the ruins.

Where are you walking through grief or disappointment right now? Instead of rushing past it, bring that place honestly before God and ask Him to help you trust that He is still at work. He is big enough to hear even the “ugly” thoughts and feelings. You are known and deeply loved by God! What small signs of His presence might He be inviting you to notice, even in the midst of sorrow? Ask God to help you notice even the smallest glimpses of His presence and faithfulness in the middle of your waiting so that your hope may be renewed.