Billy Sticker compares labor pain to Jonah in the whale's belly: both are signs of profound change happening beneath the surface. The intense discomfort gives way to joy, and what feels unbearable now becomes praise when you hold what you've been carrying.
In the belly of the whale, Jonah uses the parallel of pregnancy to describe what he's going through. And, you know, it's kind of funny because, you know, it's a fish and he's in the belly. But when you really think about it, it's really pretty powerful because labor pains are not pointless. It may feel like that at the time, in the moment, but the pains we go through is merely an indicator that there's something going on below the surface. Amen. And it hurts and it's difficult right now, but soon your pain can become your praise. The momentary discomfort gives way to complete and total joy the first time you hold your son or daughter. In the moment, the distress and the, the hardships, everything you're going through just consumes you, consumes your emotions, your thoughts, and it's all you can focus on. And then moments after, it has produced something so wonderful that sometimes it's hard to recall the pain you just went through.
