The Lord Is My Chef Daily Recipe for the Soul by Fr. Nicanor F. Lalog II
Friday in the Sixth Week of Easter, 27 May 2022
Acts 18:9-18 ><}}}}*> + <*{{{{>< John 16:20-23
Today, Lord Jesus Christ, you describe true joy in you, scary yet so wonderful:
Jesus said to his disciples: “Amen, amen, I say to you, you will weep and mourn, while the world rejoices; you will grieve, but your grief will become joy. When a woman is in labor, she is in anguish because her hour has arrived; but when she has given birth to a child, she no longer remembers the pain because of her joy that a child has been born into the world.”
John 16:20-21
Joy is like a woman in labor, in anguish because her hour has arrived but after giving birth to a child, she remembers no more the pain because of her joy of bringing forth a child into the world!
I wonder, dear Lord, in this time when childbearing has become a major issue with some women insisting on their rights, refusing to bear a child, that less and less people are also experiencing true joy; we have come to trust ourselves more than God that many are so afraid of having children, thinking it would lead to more joy when ironically it had led to fewer joys in their lives!
Joy is completely trusting in you, God, in your providence and protection like St. Paul who was so fruitful - and surely, joyful - at his stay in Corinth because of his complete trust in Jesus; no harm really ever happened to him! How sad these days when those in the pro-choice movement focus more on the minority having problems in childbearing than on the majority who make it through all the pains and joys of giving birth.
Joy is more than happiness; it is a complete trust and confidence in you, dear Jesus that even if things turn to worst, you will never abandon us until the end for you alone is our joy dwelling within us in our hearts. Amen.
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