“Those who sow in tears shall reap with shouts of joy!” (Psalm 126:5)
All of us go through times of great sorrow–a loss, depression, consequences for our sins, sins committed against us. It hurts. Each day feels like a burden, and they seem like they will never come to an end. This is when it matters so much that the Bible is a profoundly real book, speaking to your life and mine. Psalm 126:5 says, “Those who sow in tears shall reap with shouts of joy!”
The Bible acknowledges sorrow and speaks directly to its reality in our lives. More than that, it compares sorrow to a farmer sowing seed, to the grueling hard work of planting in the hopes that they will grow into something fruitful. That is what periods of sorrow and pain feel like, right? They are agonizing and exhausting; all we can do is hope they will end and become something good.
Those faint hopes can cling to this promise! Because of God’s faithful, loving sovereignty and because of the work of Jesus, our sorrows will grow into abundant joy. Maybe we will see the fruit of redemption (when God takes something bad and recreates it into something good) in this life. Or maybe we bear our sorrow until we step into eternal life with Christ. But our joy is assured in Jesus. Our sorrows and pain will grow into a harvest of gladness, laughter, and joy.
I originally wrote this post for my church, Immanuel Nashville, in our Daily Pulse email. If you want encouragement from God’s word delivered Monday thru Friday to your inbox, I encourage you to subscribe!
