Series | The Promises of God
Scripture | Psalms 126:5-6, “5
Those who sow in tears will reap with songs of joy. 6 He who goes out weeping, carrying
seed to sow, will return with songs of joy, carrying sheaves with him.”
Lesson 12 | The Promise of Joy
In this world you
will get hurt. You will suffer great
pain. You will bury loved ones, hear of
innocent people being abused, and have let downs that will crush your heart
into a million pieces. During those
times you will cry and bleed on the inside like you never imagined you could. There is no instant cure, no protective gear
for your heart, and it will not go away as fast as it came. Sometimes the pain will last far longer than
the tragedy itself.
However, as much as your
weep and shed tears is to the degree that God promises to heal you. The above verse is not a “light hearted easy
answer” to your deepest hurts but rather it is a timeless promise built upon
the very nature of God and the work of Jesus on the cross.
God doesn’t want you to hold back your tears, pretend it doesn’t hurt, or even try to run away from the
pain. He wants you to take it head on
with Him. Why? Because He will be with you through every tear you
cry and make your tears seeds of joy.
And at some point, God promises to give you a harvest of joy for every
tear you have cried.
As a result, though
in this world you will suffer great pain, you will also have great joy that will
overcome all your sorrows. In this world
the Spirit of God will fill you with inexpressible joy and the pain will
pass. The pain may last the night, but
your joy will come in morning. That
simply means, there will be a time of hurt, but as surely as the sun rises,
there will also be a time of joy.
You will be overcome
with happiness and inner peace beyond what words can explain. You will have so much overflowing joy that
others around you will want to know your secret. Your joy will bring others to know Jesus as
their Shepherd.
This doesn’t mean
you will forget the experience of pain, loss, or let down; however, it means
that you do not have to live with the agonizing pain from the things that hurt
you. You will reap joy from your tears
because of God’s great love for you. You
will find your joy in God and for that reason His light will dispel the
darkness of night and bring forth the morning.
Reflection | Do you believe God’s joy is greater than your pain and sorrow?
Action | (1) Think of the greatest pain you are facing in life right now. (2) Ask God to heal your broken heart and give you His overflowing joy. (3) Lastly, wait on the Lord in prayer and worship until the night passes and the morning comes!
One Year Reading Plan (Optional) | Exodus 34:1-35:9, Matthew 27:15-31, Psalm 33:12-22, & Proverbs 9:1-6. Click here to read online.
This is great passage I believe many including myself can relate to this.
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