Reflection for Saturday May 11 of the Sixth Week of Easter: John 16:23b-28

Gospel: John 16:23b-28

Jesus said to his disciples: Amen, amen, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in my name he will give you. Until now you have not asked anything in my name; ask and you will receive, so that your joy may be complete.  

“I have told you this in figures of speech. The hour is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figures but I will tell you clearly about the Father. On that day you will ask in my name, and I do not tell you that I will ask the Father for you. For the Father himself loves you, because you have loved me and have come to believe that I came from God. I came from the Father and have come into the world. Now I am leaving the world and going back to the Father.

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Reflection:

 How does it feel to say goodbye? It’s heartbreaking to say the least, as much as possible we don’t want to hear goodbyes. But goodbyes are for real and part of life. But why is it that we don’t want to hear goodbyes and we don’t want to be separated from the person that we love? Because goodbyes and separations entails loneliness and sadness.  

Perhaps the disciples in the gospel were also feeling lonely and sad. Just imagine being there in that situation where Jesus was already saying His goodbye to them. If we were with the apostles we surely would be lonely and sad also. But unlike human goodbyes which is often times permanent and leaves us empty. Jesus’ goodbye was not permanent and Jesus goodbye to His disciples did not left His disciples empty.  

Jesus assured His disciples that after He left them they could still invoke His name when they pray for something to the Father. And through His name they can have whatever they ask in prayer to the Father. 

Everything is possible with Jesus we can have whatever we want to have for as long as we ask Jesus’ help. The impossible becomes very much possible when we pray with faith to God through Jesus. – Marino J. Dasmarinas