January 26, Mourning Joy

Today’s reading: Psalms 126-130

“Those who sow with tears will reap with songs of joy. Those who go out weeping, carrying seed to sow, will return with songs of joy, carrying sheaves with them”     - Psalm 126:5-6.

What is the Lord telling you through today’s verses? Your tears can lead to a harvest of joy. Jesus made a similar statement in Matthew 5:4: “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.” Why should you mourn? You can start with your own sinfulness. Then move on to mourn the injustice in the world, the persecuted church, the opportunities that are lost due to greed, disunity in the church, and the lost who don’t know Christ. God does not want you to stay in a state of mourning, however, for your tears lead you to recognize that God wants you to play a role in addressing that need over which you mourn. When you realize that God has something for you to do, your will see that your tears were actually seeds that have led to a harvest. Then you will sing songs of joy and bear much fruit as you find and fulfill your God-given purpose that is designed to address those things over which you have wept.