John 16

Jesus uses an analogy here that I can totally relate to. His followers are about to go through the most horrific pain. But then, the greatest most unimaginable gift of all time will come. The very Spirit of our Holy God will be able to come and live inside of us. God will lead us and love us and make us new from the inside out. No news in the history of the earth stacks up against that monumental breakthrough. That's the Gospel.

My friend Sarah is in labor right now. I hope that by the time you read this, her pain will be over and her joy will have come. Although my second two labors weren't really awful, the first one was pretty rough. But no matter what horror stories women tell each other at showers and other lady-gatherings, the evidence that it all quickly dissolves into bliss is the few only children in the world. Even though we can retell the story blow by blow, we all forget when we see that sweet baby for the first time.

So, when I think about the wonderful, priceless, treasure that the Holy Spirit is, I am thankful for Jesus' illustration. But even more so, I'm thankful for His labor of love that brought the joy.