Sowing in tears...

So I'm going to digress away from Isaiah today to share something that is a little personal, but very awesome!

Recently a sister in Christ shared a word for me that she had gotten from the Lord. It came with a picture of my son and I playing together joyfully. In fact, her entire word for me had to do with JOY, and that there's always a season for being joyful. She gave me a Scripture about sowing in tears and reaping with joy; it sounded oddly familiar at the time but I didn't delve further until today, almost a week later.

I was looking back in my journals from the past year, and I came across one rushed and disjointed entry dated 3/13/09. I quickly realized I penned this entry on the morning before I had a miscarriage; at the time, I was already experiencing some symptoms that indicated there was a problem with my pregnancy. I was waiting to go to the doctor to get checked out and I was crying out to God for help. I poured over the Psalms, trying to find some hope and security in them. I wrote a number of references down that morning, but the only verses I wrote down in their entirety were Psalm 126:5-6:

"Those who sow in tears shall reap with joyful shouting. He who goes to and fro weeping, carrying his bag of seed, shall indeed come again with a shout of joy, bringing his sheaves with him."

Notice the first part of that passage?! That's why it sounded familiar to me. God gave me this verse as I was about to enter one of the most difficult parts of my life. I grieved the loss, and it made it difficult for me to pray and spend time with Him for some time. I believe He gave these verses to me to confirm that joy would come again, both in my relationship with Him and in the form of a second, healthy pregnancy a short time later. And while the birth of my son brought a dark season of postpartum depression, I've been mostly content since then, though always kind of expecting something else to go wrong.

I think God used my friend to remind me of this verse to show me His goodness, and that He really does work everything together for our good. There will be times when we will sow in tears, but that's just the prelude. Soon a harvest will come where we will reap with joyful shouting as we praise the Lord who provided it. Consider this verse from Hebrews: "No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it." There are hard lessons to be learned in the sowing, but righteousness and peace will come with the reaping.

Why did I share this? I think we all need to be more open and attentive to the Lord's voice, and when He gives us a word for someone else, we need to be obedient and share that word with them. My friend sharing with me helped me remember that God is always with me on this journey, and that a Scripture He gives me during a time of great sorrow will also be relevant during a time of unspeakable joy. So step out and tell others what God had shown you. Even if it seems uncomfortable. Even if you're afraid that the words you have to give them may not be what they want to hear. You will bless them and also bless the heart of the One who spoke those words to you. :o)