Joy Comes in the Morning

¹ I will exalt you, O LORD, for you lifted me out of the depths and did not let my enemies gloat over me.
² O LORD my God, I called to you for help and you healed me.
³ O LORD, you brought my soul up from the grave; you spared me from going down into the pit.

⁴ Sing to the LORD, you saints of his; praise his holy name.
⁵ For his anger lasts only a moment, but his favor lasts a lifetime; weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning.

Psalms 30:1-5

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I turn to the lyrics of this ancient hymn whenever I am going through a difficult "season" of life. I have found great hope in the promises, and in God, as I've meditated upon these lyrics during the darkest times of my life.

When my parents divorced after twenty-three years of marriage my Dad was in depression and grieved deeply. I had heard a song in church that was based on the above passage of scripture. I gave my Dad a cassette tape (remember those?!) of the song along with the lyrics that I had written out on a piece of typing paper.

When he died a few years ago and we were going through his things, I found in a little cedar box that he kept on top of his chest of drawers the tattered page, stained and yellowed, obviously read and re-read many times for more that twenty years. We read the lyrics as a poem at his funeral service.

If you've knelt beside the rubble of an aching, broken heart,
When the things you gave your life to fell apart;
You're not the first to be acquainted with sorrow, grief or pain,
But the Master promised sunshine after the rain.

Hold on my child, joy comes in the morning,
Weeping only lasts for the night;
Hold on my child, joy comes in the morning,
The darkest hour means dawn is just in sight.

To invest your seed of trust in God in mountains you can't move,
You have risked your life on things you cannot prove;
But to give the things you cannot keep for what you cannot lose,
Is the way to find the joy God has for you.

Hold on my child, joy comes in the morning,
Weeping only lasts for the night;
Hold on my child, joy comes in the morning,
The darkest hour means dawn is just in sight.

The darkest hour means dawn is just in sight.
Just in sight!

My Dad found great comfort in those lyrics. Those words gave us comfort during the funeral service. I still have that weathered page, and the words continue to encourage me when I must weather another storm of life.

If you're in the middle of one of those dark seasons, dwelling in the pit, wondering if there will ever be any light at the end of your tunnel, then I hope you find these words encouraging to your spirit today.

Hear God say to you, "Hold on, my child; joy comes in the morning. Remember, it's always darkest just before the dawn. Hold on."

~ Father, it's not the song that sustains me, but you. Help me to know your presence and strength today. Give me wisdom and hope. Amen.