A little while.....

 

I found myself thinking about my mom a lot today as I continued my reflections on the Gospel of John, and Jesus’ words to the Apostles just before His Passion: “You will grieve, but your grief will become joy.” (John 16: 20)

Jesus tried to prepare His followers for the days to come.  He would be gone, and fear would grip them.  Still in His presence, they didn’t understand.  Hidden in locked rooms after the horror, they clutched His words and still did not understand.  Didn’t He promise: “I will not leave you orphans” (John 14:18)?  But there they were.  Left behind.  Forgotten.

Being left behind leaves a sting that is hard to forget.  We remember the emptiness we feel when our grandparent or parent dies.  Some separations are harsh.  We hear of children being left at the police station or in dumpsters and then placed in an orphanage, never to see their biological family again.  There are countless stories of women fleeing violence who arrive at our borders, only to have officials take their children for months of separation.   Abandonment is a brush with death.

Jesus spoke His words in the Gospel (John 16:16-20) before the crucifixion, but they’re especially meaningful as we ponder His Ascension.  He told the disciples then that they wouldn’t see Him for a while, but then they would see Him again, referring to the time between the crucifixion and the resurrection, and that their grief would turn to joy.  And of course He was right.  Imagine how deep their grief was watching Him die, then imagine their joy at His resurrection.  But at His Ascension, He was leaving them again.  How could they bear this separation?  He had just come back – from the dead – and now He was leaving them again.  How unfair this must have seemed.  They just got him back, and now He was leaving again.  He said He was going to the Father, which is a good thing for Him, but a sad thing for those He was leaving here.  And we need to remember His words again, “A little while and you will no longer see me, and again a little while later and you will see me.”  At Ascension when He goes to the Father, He won’t be back in a few days like He was at the resurrection, but we hear again that a little while later they will see Him.  This time when He goes to the Father, He’ll wait for them there. He’ll wait for all of us there.

When they meet again in heaven their grief will turn to joy.  When we see Him in heaven our griefs will turn to joy.  Jesus proved at the resurrection that death is not the end and left us with that hope at Ascension, and not just for Him but for everyone.  He proved that all death is not the end and opened the gates of heaven.  After a while, the disciples will see Jesus in heaven.  After a while, we will see Jesus in heaven, and after a while we will see our loved ones in heaven.  That’s the hope Jesus gives us today. My mom died a few years ago, and my grief is deep.  But a little while and I will see her, and my grief will turn to joy.  And it’s what we all can look forward to.  A little while and we will see Jesus.  A little while and we will be reunited with our loved ones.  Easter promises us that death is not the end.  A little while and we will see Him, and our grief will become joy.  A little while later………