who sow in tears
Will reap the harvest with joy.
The one who keeps crying,
bring seeds to sow,
I will undoubtedly come back with joy,
Bringing his sheaves with him.
(Psalm 126:5,6)
Every life has some rain, and each of us has “sown” our share of tears. But God has made it possible that those who sow in tears will reap joy. We may wish that the time of harvest had come sooner, but that time has not yet come. For all we know, it may be very near, and in fact, we are taught to live every day in expectation of Christ’s return. But for now, the harvest is still in the future. Instead of speculating or worrying about God’s reasons for delaying the harvest, we must willingly enter into these days of sowing, even if it means sowing tears. In the words of John Greenleaf Whittier’s poem, “The time of the seed is yours: God alone / sees the end of what is sown; / our sight is weak and dim / the time of the harvest is hidden with him.”
Of course, it takes faith to hold on to the belief that after the seeds of tears are sown, there will be a harvest of joy. Some days, it definitely doesn’t feel like things are going to work out that way. But we must choose Paul’s perspective: “I know whom I have believed and I am convinced that he is able to keep that which I have committed to him until that day” (2 Timothy 1:12).
If we are “pressing toward those things that are before” (Philippians 3:13), it means that we are “looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God” (2 Peter 3:12). For now, this is the world where our work must be done and where, yes, our tears must be sown. But this world is not all that is here. If we have followed the gospel of Christ and are living our lives in it, we are moving to a realm where our tears will give way to perfect joy. “And God will wipe out every tear from their eyes; there will be no more death, no more mourning, no more crying. There will be no more pain, for the former things have passed away” (Revelation 21:4).
beyond this valley of tears
there is a life above
indifferent to the flight of years
And all that life is love.
(James Montgomery)
Gary Henry – WordPoints.com AreYouaChristian.com
