Daily Thought for Friday 4th April 2025
“Those who go out weeping, carrying seed to sow, will return with songs of joy, carrying sheaves with them.”
Psalm 126:6
From sorrow to joy
Fan Heafield
Just at the moment the world seems full of tragedy, cruelty and tears. Equally many of us are also suffering our own losses and weeping whilst carrying on. Some days can seem impossible and certainly the idea of returning with songs of joy can be unimaginable. But Psalmist 126 says this: “Restore our fortunes, Lord.”
Today’s psalm is really all about faith. Faith is putting our trust in someone or something we cannot guarantee or control, but on which we rely … from simple things like, “I trust the sun will come up tomorrow morning”, to the more personal, “I trust that the one I love loves me”. Most people I know can relate to this psalm, at least to some extent. We have all experienced times of sadness and times of joy. In many cases, our sorrow leads us closer to God. God’s grace reverses our losses and turns them into songs of joy and hope.
For me this psalm is about trusting and allowing God to direct our lives and not to give up. Through walking with God and being willing to listen to what he wants us to do we can find joy and peace.
Shall we pray?:
Gracious God, how I thank you and worship you for being a redeeming, transforming, renewing God. Thank you for being with me in my times of sorrow. Thank you for using my suffering and even my failures for your purposes. I pray today for those who are in the “planting with tears” season of life. Give them hope. Give them the reassurance of your presence. Give them confidence that you will work all things together for good. O Lord, may their season of sad planting end. May their time of joyful harvesting come. Amen.
Fan Heafield is a retired secondary headteacher who having come back to Scotland has found herself called to take a very active part in spreading her faith.
Thinking it through.
In times of great sadness have you been able to turn to God?
Have you felt God’s presence strongly enough to help you overcome some negative experience in your life, using it for his purposes and your joy?
How can we use our experience of God’s love to help others who are struggling with sadness?