From labor to the joy of the resurrection

by Melissa Meyers

John 16: 21- A woman giving birth to a child has pain because her time has come; but when her baby is born she forgets the anguish because of her joy that a child is born into the world. (NIV)

9 months. Give or take a few weeks is the length of time it takes to create and grow a human being. The African Bush elephant wins out as having the longest gestation of any mammal at 22 months. And, the Virginian opossum takes the cake in having the shortest mammalian pregnancy of only 12 days. Imagine their birthing centers.

This month we are focusing on the word labor, which has many Bible verses associated with it. But, as a NICU nurse, who attends high risk deliveries, when I hear the word labor my mind shifts to childbirth. There is a reason childbirth has been named labor. Birth is pure physical work. In the book of John, Jesus tells his disciples that he is going to go away, and they become upset. Then Jesus uses the intimate illustration of a woman in labor to comfort them. Reread John 16:21. Then the next verse says.

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. -John 16:22

Let me take a sidebar to say we always strive to take scripture in context. Jesus is using this as an illustration, he is not saying every time a woman gives birth she’ll experience this. That is taking the verse out of context. If you had a difficult birth, perhaps followed by post partum depression, and struggled to connect with your baby, you are not alone. Also, I want to be sensitive to those who have never experienced childbirth. This verse isn’t saying you can only understand if you’ve been through it.

In fact, I find it extraordinary that Jesus comforts his disciples, a group of men, all different ages, married and unmarried, of different occupations, with an illustration of childbirth. The concept of awe and wonder after labor is universal, and one God uses to emphasis the joy that the disciples will experience when Jesus returns to them after his inevitable death on the cross.

Let’s look at the stages of labor to unpack this:

Stage 1: Contractions that cause cervical dilation, I’m not talking Braxton Hicks, those false impersonators. In this stage a woman moves from early labor to active labor. Oxytocin is released and 3-5 contractions are coming every 10 minutes. At first they are not as strong, they build in intensity until they are coming every couple of minutes. Breathe. Breathe. Breathe. The woman’s body is preparing itself for the delivery stage, and this can take hours of intense work for a mom.

Stage 2: Delivery. (Such a little word that carries a thousand stories of tears, sweat, and drama.) The contraction stage was difficult, but now “the time has come” stage. This is heavy work with or without pain medicine. It requires focus, grit, determination and strong participation to PUSH. The baby is fully engaged in the birth canal and is hopefully moving downward with every push. I’ve never witnessed a birth where the mother didn’t long for this stage to be over. The head finally crowns, often with one or two or more pushes, the head finally emerges and the rest of the body slips out. BABY!

Stage 3: Afterbirth. When the baby cries, the whole room relaxes. The uterus continues to contract to deliver that amazing organ the woman has grown to support another human being, but the contractions are less intense. This is the JOY, Jesus is talking about. There is nothing more awe inspiring than placing a baby upon a mother’s chest, and witnessing the mother turning to look at her secret companion for the past nine months face to face. I can still remember seeing each of my children’s faces that first time, even though their births were drastically different. (Malcolm was a natural birth/Emily a C-section)

With Malcolm I remember thinking: “I can’t believe we made this perfect human.” With Emily: “I’ve never seen a more beautiful face.” Then tears of sheer happiness. All the struggles of the last nine months, the nausea, the weight gain, the pain of birth was replaced with pure contentment.

Think of the disciples when Jesus came and stood before them, days after their worst fears had come to pass. Days after their hearts had been broken, and they were hiding in fear. In an instant it all changed.

John 20: 19-20 On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jewish leaders, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord. (NIV)

Someday we’ll have a similar experience, when we stand in front of Jesus face to face. All of our life’s struggles and labors will simply fade away in the light of his perfect love.

Melissa Meyers is co-editor of The Stir, wife to John, and mother to Malcolm (17) and Emily (14). She is a Neonatal Nurse and Creative Writer. She is the author of, Beneath the Ancient Dust: Inspirational Stories from Nine Years in Afghanistan. At Calvary, she enjoys teaching on Thursday mornings at Renovare. Her hobbies are coffee, reading, and taking long walks. She will accept an invitation out for coffee anytime.