Daily Devotions
Friday, June 6, 2025
This devotion pairs with this weekend’s Lutheran Hour sermon, which can be found at lhm.org.
John 16:21-22 – [Jesus said] “When a woman is giving birth, she has sorrow because her hour has come, but when she has delivered the baby, she no longer remembers the anguish, for joy that a human being has been born into the world. So also you have sorrow now, but I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you.”
It’s the only movie I’d ever paid for, but didn’t stay for to the end. I thought we saved at least one of the ticket stubs. I looked through the old baby books but couldn’t find it. It would have been nice if we had saved it—something to remember the night by. For my wife, it would be symbolic of the new reality that was waiting for us, after nine months of waiting, the hour had finally come. It would have meant the same for me, but also symbolic in another way: because to this day, I never have seen the end of that movie. And I think I paid six bucks a piece for those tickets. And if I still had the stub, I could prove it.
Honestly, it pained me to leave before the ending. I know it’s silly, what with the fact of our first child being born and all, and we were being delivered into this greater reality that would change our lives forever. Yeah, it’s silly that part of me wanted to stay there. Especially now, looking back two decades later. I asked my wife about this, and we couldn’t even remember the name of the movie. We still don’t know how it ended. But we do have a son—and joy that a half-used ticket stub cannot take away.
Jesus gave His disciples this word-picture: He said His mission would be something like a birth. And like a birth, there would be pain, pressure, and on the other side of it, joy. Jesus knows that He’s about to be hung on a cross to die and raised from the dead on the third day after. He knows that after His ascension to His Father in heaven, His disciples, as they serve as His witnesses, will also face pressure, persecution, and pain until the day He returns, and His kingdom fully comes. So, He gives us this image. None of these sorrows can hold a candle to the light of the glory of God’s kingdom, the new reality that has already come. In that light, it will all seem as small as a half-used ticket stub.
If all you had is the memory of a half-used stub, your sense of loss might be unbearable. But if you tune into the new reality, a greater joy will take hold of you. Jesus said we can tune into God’s kingdom reality by listening to His Word and responding in prayer. Jesus promised His joy would take hold of us through prayer. Prayer is talking to God in Jesus’ Name. Prayer is asking God, thanking God, confessing to God, complaining to God, praising God, all in response to His command and promise. Prayer is a gift of God’s Spirit. Prayer is how you tune into God’s new reality. Prayer is the pathway to joy. We follow Jesus on that way. We take our half-used ticket stubs and head out, rejoicing.
WE PRAY: Holy Spirit, remind us to ask of the Father in Jesus’ Name so that our joy may be full. Amen.
This Daily Devotion was written by Rev. Dr. Michael Zeigler, Speaker for The Lutheran Hour.
Reflection Questions:
- Think of time in your life when you transitioned from something lesser to something greater—was there anything that pained you to leave that lesser reality behind?
- God’s Word and our response in prayer is how we embrace God’s greater reality. When have you known joy through prayer?
- What are some signposts and memory-joggers that lead you back to God’s Word and prayer?