JOY COMES IN THE MORNING

 

Thursday, September 14, 2023

 

JOY COMES IN THE MORNING

 

Ps 30:10-12

10 Hear, O LORD, and have mercy upon me: LORD, be thou my helper.

11 Thou hast turned for me my mourning into dancing: thou hast put off my sackcloth, and girded me with gladness;

12 To the end that my glory may sing praise to thee, and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give thanks unto thee forever. KJV

 

          As a young pastor, I would foolishly say to the hurting, “I understand” but my experience of calamity seldom equaled that of the one I was hoping to comfort. Later, much later, I abandoned my pretense of understanding and would say, “I can’t imagine your sorrow … but I care.” It may have made little difference to those suffering, but it has made all the difference in me.

 

          To the man who is now alone, I care. I can’t imagine the hollow emptiness of a house without its heart, but I care. To the mother who waits at the hospital bedside of a child, I care. I would fuss about fetching tissues and coffee, but my true service was simply caring.

 

          Later in my ministry, I became a police chaplain and caring became an avocation. To those who think it exciting, you are right, but know also that it can be tedious and boring. My task was listener and comforter. I gave death notifications. I knocked on doors to tell distraught parents that their children would not be coming home due to a horrific traffic accident. I had begun to care. I learned the meaning of empathy. Weeping would endure for a night.

 

          This I know. God is merciful and his love endures forever. Let Him wrap you in His loving arms until the weeping turns to peace and joy.

 

Ps 23:4

4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.

 

Sweet Jesus, comfort all those who suffer grief today. AMEN