The Strangest Promise

This is perhaps the least quoted and least honored of all of the promises of Jesus:

You will grieve. - John 16:20

You won’t see that promise in devotional books or on plaques or painted on people’s breakfast room walls. That’s because we don’t like sadness. We don’t want to face our inner brokenness. We struggle to admit our needs.

And yet this is exactly where Jesus meets us - in the sadness. It was Jesus, after all, who preached “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted” (Matthew 5:6).

There’s an interesting comment in the Book of Revelation related to this. The woman who is the personification of evil in the world cries out boastfully “She says in her heart, ‘I will never mourn!’ “(Revelation 18:7). Did you get that? Scripture is clear that it’s just plain wrong to commit to not grieving. That’s because it’s so human to be human. It’s so healthy to grieve. It’s just plain right.

Take some time today to ask God to help you grieve whatever it is you need to grieve.