Psalm 30:5 (ESV)
“Weeping may tarry for the night, but joy comes with the morning.”
DEVOTIONAL
Grief and sorrow often visit us like an uninvited guest in the night. It may be the loss of a loved one, a broken relationship, the sting of guilt, or the quiet ache of prayers seemingly unanswered. Sometimes, the darkness seems to linger longer than we think it should. We wonder, Will the light ever return? Will this heaviness ever lift?
David, the psalmist, knew that kind of night. He knew what it was to be broken and burdened, to taste the bitterness of sin and sorrow. But by God’s mercy, he also knew the sunrise of God’s faithfulness. “Weeping may tarry for the night,” he writes—not forever. There is an end to the sorrow for the child of God. “Joy comes with the morning.”
This is not a naïve joy. It’s not a shallow smile that pretends pain doesn’t exist. No, this joy is deeper. It is a joy born not of changing circumstances but of an unchanging Savior. It is the joy of knowing that Christ has entered into our sorrow, carried it to the cross, and walked out of the grave with the promise of new life. Our darkest night was His darkest hour on Calvary. But His resurrection was the dawn of joy for all who trust in Him.
For the believer, every night of weeping is temporary. Every trial has an expiration date. Why? Because Jesus lives. And because He lives, hope rises again with every morning sun. The Lord may allow us to walk through valleys, but He never leaves us there. He brings us through. The God who allows the night is the same God who promises the morning.
If you are in a season of sorrow, take heart. Your tears are not forgotten. Your suffering is not wasted. And your joy is not gone—it is coming. Perhaps not in the way you expect, and not always on your timetable, but joy is promised to those who are in Christ. And His promises do not fail.
So wait on the Lord. The morning is coming.
Prayer:
Gracious Father,
You are the God who sees every tear and holds every broken heart. Thank You that our sorrow is never wasted in Your hands, and that in Your perfect timing, You turn mourning into dancing. Teach us to trust You in the night, to cling to Your promises when the way is dark. Help us to remember that because Jesus rose from the grave, joy is not just a fleeting feeling—it is our inheritance.
Strengthen us with Your Spirit, comfort us with Your Word, and draw us closer to Christ, our sure and steady hope.
In His precious name we pray,
Amen.