April 13. Talk to your tears.

Those who sow in tears shall reap with shouts of joy.

He who goes out weeping, bearing the seed for sowing shall come home with shouts of joy,

bringing his sheaves with him. Psalm 126 verses 5 and 6.

There is nothing sad about sowing seed. It takes no more work than reaping.

The days can be beautiful. There can be great hope of harvest. Yet the psalm speaks of sowing in tears.

It says that someone goes forth weeping, bearing the seed for sowing. So why are they weeping?

I think the reason is not that sowing is sad or that sowing is hard.

I think the reason has nothing to do with sowing. Sowing is simply the work that has to be done

even when there are things in life that make us cry. The crops won't wait while we finish our

grief or solve all our problems. If we are going to eat next winter we must get out in the field

and sow the seed whether we're crying or not. If you do that the promise of the psalm is you will

reap with shouts of joy. You will come home with shouts of joy bringing your sheaves with you

not because the tears of sowing produce the joy of reaping but because the sheer sowing produces

the reaping and you need to remember this even when your tears tempt you to give up sowing.

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 feel to be sown dishes to be washed car to be fixed sermon to be written

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

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