May 29, 2025 // Thursday of the Sixth Week of Easter // Solemnity of the Ascension of the Lord [In Ecclesiastical Provinces of Boston, Hartford, New York, Omaha, Philadelphia]
Read the Word // Open your Bible to today’s Gospel from the Sixth Thursday of Easter: John 16:16-20
Reflect on the Word //
I looked at the older boy on the playground and tried to understand why some of the kids were shocked or snickered at a phrase he said. It didn't make sense to me. Later that day I asked my mom what the phrase meant. She looked at my young, innocent self and told me that it was something inappropriate and she’d explain more when I was older. I was dissatisfied with the answer, but went back to playing, trusting that she knew what was best for me. As I grew older there have been countless times when I wanted to know the answer to something but had to settle for not fully comprehending what was happening.
Similarly, in today’s Gospel during the Last Supper, Jesus is preparing the Apostles for things to come as His death approaches. He says, “A little while and you will no longer see me, and again a little while later and you will see me” (John 16:16). It’s a confusing statement, as reflected in the Apostles' reaction. They murmur to themselves and ask, “What is this ‘little while’ of which he speaks? We do not know what He means” (John 16:17). Jesus listens to them, but doesn’t clarify. Was it because they weren’t ready to know the whole story? Instead, He considers their coming grief and anguish, and He gives them words that don’t make sense now, but will in the future: “Amen, amen, I say to you, you will weep and mourn, while the world rejoices; you will grieve, but your grief will become joy” (John 16:21).
How many times have we sought answers or didn’t understand what God was doing with our lives? Like the Apostles, we sat confused, wishing Jesus would make His meaning clear. But God knows our hearts. He knows when it’s best to give clear answers and when to wait and challenge us so we can learn to better trust in Him. We can take comfort in knowing that God lovingly knows our hearts, and in time, our grief shall also turn to joy.
Relate to the Lord // Do you believe your grief will turn to joy in Jesus? Talk to Him about it.
Bobbi Rol is a wife and mama living on the Monterey Bay in California with her husband, daughter (also a Blessed Is She writer), and three teen boys. When she is not driving her kids to school, practices, and games, she can be found by the ocean, catching a movie, or collecting journals and stationery. She was a contributing author to Gift: Study on the Eucharist, And Hay Became Holy, and our children’s devotional prayer book, Rise Up. Find out more about her at https://www.instagram.com/
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