Psalm 30:5

"Weeping may last through the night

 but joy comes in the morning."

     The events of this last week make this Scripture even more poignant.  God's children have been forced to walk through some pretty awful things because of someone else's actions.  And oftentimes we can become burdened with a sense of despair; the abject display of evil can cover our souls with a veil of defeat.

     But this Scripture reminds us that there is a power greater than that of those who have hurt us.  We must remind ourselves that God is a just God and He will not tolerate those who hurt His own.  He will do battle for the wronged and the abused.

     The other side of that coin is what the above illustration represents.  After this week, we can certainly identify with the tears of Mary, as she cradles the lifeless body of her son.  But those tears would soon be replaced with joy as she realizes that her son has been resurrected to eternal life, fulfilling the promise of the angel Gabriel that His kingdom would never end.

     Today's featured Scripture is reinforced by other meaningful verses that all point to the sovereignty of God in all our painful situations.  Through them we need to realize that Jesus did not come to heal the healthy, or to bring peace to those who are content.  He came for just such times as this .... to offer solace to the brokenhearted, and much-needed peace to all who are saddened beyond endurance.  As recorded in John 16:19-24,  “Your enemies will rejoice,” Jesus tells his disciples when he was about to save their souls, “but their joy will turn to despair.  But you, though you sorrow for a moment, your sorrow will turn into joy that no one can ever take away.” 

     It goes without saying that our enemies rejoiced this past week.  Our nation suffered through two catastrophic events.  And it is equally true that it was impossible to see the hand of God in either of these horrific events.  But we must never forget that when we cannot see God's hand, we are to trust in His heart.  Our faith must reassure us that He is still working in those "mysterious ways" Scripture talks about.  We may not understand what's happening, but God knows, and He is absolutely sure about the outcome.  So what are we to do in these mournful times?  1 Peter 1:6-7 tells us "... though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials. These have come so that the proven genuineness of your faith—of greater worth than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ is revealed."

     Yes, we weep through the night when evil wins the day; but if we will put our trust and hope in the One who suffered greater than any of us can imagine, we will find that the morning dawns and we possess the comfort and peace that brings joy.  It may not happen in a 24-hour cycle; there may be many nights of weeping before we wake to the promised joy.  But if we keep our eyes on Jesus, and continually turn our sorrow over to Him, our tears will be wiped away.  Above all else, believe the words in red!