Joy Follows Pain

Scripture: Psalms 30:1-5 - I will extol thee, O Lord; for thou hast lifted me up, and hast not made my foes to rejoice over me.2 O Lord my God, I cried unto thee, and thou hast healed me. 3 O Lord, thou hast brought up my soul from the grave: thou hast kept me alive, that I should not go down to the pit. 4 Sing unto the Lord, O ye saints of his, and give thanks at the remembrance of his holiness. 5 For his anger endureth but a moment; in his favour is life: weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.

Have you ever felt like giving up?  Have you ever been really excited or at peace in your life; then all of a sudden things changed.  Then you got discouraged, or were in pain, or were grieving or you felt bad because you know you had sinned?  It was as if a dark cloud surrounded you.  No matter how dark our situations may be for a while, it is imperative for us to intentionally think about and praise God for what He has already done for us – how He has previously lifted our burdens.  

In Psalms 30:1-5, David reminisced/reflected on how good God had been to him.  God had lifted him up.  David thanked God for what He had already done (Psalms 30:1).  God had not allowed his enemies to triumph over hm (Psalms 30:1).  God healed his body (Psalms 30:2).  God saved his soul Psalms 30:3).  God kept him alive and delivered him from some defeats in battle (Psalms 30:5).  Even though we don’t want to admit it, sometimes we have dark seasons in our lives because of sin.  David sinned by numbering the people (I Chronicles 21:1-30)  I Chronicles 21:1-2 says “And Satan stood up against Israel, and provoked David to number Israel.  And Davis said to Joab and  to the rulers of the people, go number Israel from Beersheba even to Dan; and bring the number of them to me, that I may know it.”  God’s anger with us, His children, is temporary.  He is eager to be gracious to us.  We have to be eager to turn away from sin (I John 1:;9).  

If you feel as if your pain or weeping may never end, remember --  God knows all about your pain.  Let God’s word guide you and fill you with hope.  James 1:2-4 (AMP) says “Consider it nothing but joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you fall into various trials.  Be assured that the testing of your faith (through experience) produces endurance (leading to spiritual maturity and inner peace).  And let endurance have its perfect result and do a thorough work, so that you may be perfect and completely developed (in your faith) lacking in nothing.”  

Hold on until your joy comes!  Hold on to God’s unchanging hand!  We must be assured that there can be a time of joy even in the midst of our trials, because the Lord is with us.  He will strengthen us and carry us through.  The joy of the Lord is our strength (Nehemiah 8:10)!

Prayer:  Dear Heavenly Father:  Thank You so much for promising that You will always be with me – no matter what I am facing.  Whenever I’m in pain, please help me by Your power to have joy in the midst of the pain. Help me to trust/rest in You and obey Your word.  You are my strength.  All this I pray in Jesus’ name.  Amen.

(by Marsha Williams)