Today’s readings
[Mass for the school children.]
Jesus tells us today that sadness is always going to be a part of life. That’s not the good news, that’s just the way things are. I think we can all think about things that have made us sad. Maybe we have had a good friend who has moved away and we don’t get to see them very much. That makes us sad. Maybe we have lost a pet or a toy that we have liked a lot, and that makes us sad. Maybe we didn’t get picked for a team, or didn’t understand something in school, and those things have made us sad.
And some of us have had harder things that have been sad for us. Maybe your parents aren’t getting along or have split up. That’s very sad. Just last week, my father died. I miss him a lot, and I am very sad – maybe you too have had a grandparent or someone you’re very close to die and you don’t get to see them again. That’s very sad.
But sadness is a part of our life. But Jesus says today that sadness is not forever. He says that it’s just like a woman who is having a baby. She is sad because giving birth hurts so much. But after a while, the baby is born and the pain stops, and she gets to see the beautiful child she brought into the world and is happy again. Just like that, the things that make us sad won’t last forever. One day, we will get to see Jesus face-to-face and he will bring us happiness that lasts forever. Then there won’t be anything that can make us sad again.
That doesn’t mean that our sadness doesn’t hurt right now. It just means it won’t hurt forever. Because Jesus loves us, we can look forward to happiness forever, even if we have to put up with a little sadness now and then.