This morning I felt like I had my butt kicked in church by our Brazilian pastor, Pastor Jaime Cisterna. He shared about Psalm 126 and the process involved for restoration.
In case you are not familiar with Psalm 126, here it is:
When the Lord restored the fortunes of Zion,
we were like those who dreamed.
Our mouths were filled with laughter,
our tongues with songs of joy.
Then it was said among the nations,
“The Lord has done great things for them.”
The Lord has done great things for us,
and we are filled with joy.Restore our fortunes, Lord,
like streams in the Negev.
Those who sow with tears
will reap with songs of joy.
Those who go out weeping,
carrying seed to sow,
will return with songs of joy,
carrying sheaves with them.
The process that was talked about this morning regarding restoration was:
- A divine process
- A maturing process
- A faith process
- A love process
The part of this mornings sermon that stood out to me was the maturing process portion of what Pastor Jamie shared. In Psalm 126 it refers to verses 5 – 6:
Those who sow with tears
will reap with songs of joy.
Those who go out weeping,
carrying seed to sow,
will return with songs of joy,
carrying sheaves with them.
It talks about how even through “tears” and in hard times we must still continue to sow. No matter how we feel, we must continue on with what God has for us. Even when it feels like we can’t do it, we need to do what God calls us to do, and He will do the rest.
Another quote that came up this morning was from John Piper:
So here’s the lesson: When there are simple, straightforward jobs to be done, and you are full of sadness, and tears are flowing easily, go ahead and do the jobs with tears. Be realistic. Say to your tears: ‘Tears, I feel you. You make me want to quit life. But there is a field to be sown (dishes to be washed, car to be fixed, sermon to be written). I know you will wet my face several times today, but I have work to do and you will just have to go with me. I intend to take the bag of seeds and sow. If you come along then you will just have to wet the rows.”
Then say, on the basis of God’s word, ‘Tears, I know that you will not stay forever. The very fact that I just do my work (tears and all) will in the end bring a harvest of blessing. So go ahead and flow if you must. But I believe (I do not yet see it or feel it fully)—I believe that the simple work of my sowing will bring sheaves of harvest. And your tears will be turned to joy.”
The sermon should be available soon for download on the South Calgary Community Church sermon page.
As is often the case for me this life lesson reminded me of a song …
Some days the desire to stay in bed and give up can be almost overpowering, but God promises the harvest to those that sow. So how do you get through the times of “tears” and press on with sowing the field that God has laid before you?
This is really a great message for being encouraged to keep moving through pain and grief. Very encouraging!
The guy who taught me about YWAM DTS during my training had written a song based on that scripture. I can hear it in my head and in my heart while reading this.
“When the Lord restored our fortunes, we were like those who dreamed…”