Sow in Tears → Reap in Joy! :D

  Psalm 126

 1 When YAHWEH restored the fortunes of Zion, 

   we were like those who dreamed.

2 Our mouths were filled with laughter, 

   our tongues with songs of joy.

Then it was said among the nations, 

   “Yahweh has done great things for them.” 

3 Yahweh has done great things for us, 

   and we are filled with joy.

 4 Restore our fortunes, YAHWEH, 

   like streams in the Negev. 

5 Those who sow with tears 

   will reap with songs of joy. 

6 Those who go out weeping, 

   carrying seed to sow, 

will return with songs of joy,

   carrying sheaves with them.

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Sow in Tears? How?

To sow means "to plant seeds by scattering it on the earth." So it entails giving something away and expecting some thing back after some time.  So how can we "sow in tears"?

1. Allowing God to Prune you- God asks us to give up our whole lives in exchange for new life, life full of life! He also asks us to give up the things in our hands that we are clinging onto. We may really like those things and become so used to them that it hurts to let go of them but we have to remember that God has lots of good gifts to give us, (immeasurably more than what we could ask or imagine!) but we won't be able to receive them with clenched fists; we need to open up our hands, give up what's there and wait for God to satisfy us with His gifts. Pruning comes before promotion :)  Related post: Pruning, Search me and Taste and See.
2. Praying- God hears the prayers we pray to Him but did you know that He also sees the tears we cry out to Him? And they count like prayers! "You have kept count of my tossings; put my tears in Your bottle. Are they not in Your book?" (Psalm 56:8) That's so cool! Sometimes we are so hurt, angry, ashamed, discouraged... etc that we don't feel like praying to God about whatever we are going through but instead of holding in all those emotions to yourself (which will end up harming you) you can release it to God. Just Cry. I know that seems like a weakness so it is avoided (I wasn't a fan of crying either lol. I'll share a funny story with you guys later) but God designed crying as a way to release stress (listen to the song below) and our tears don't go wasted. He sees all of them and when we sow in tears we will reap with joy! :) An example in the Bible (a success story lol) is Hannah. Read 1 Samuel 1. She was barren and she was made fun of  because of that but instead of holding in her anguish she went before God and wept. God heard her prayers and saw her tears and He blessed her with a child, Samuel =)
3. Giving an offering- Another way of sowing in tears is giving to God or others even when you don't have much. It's easier to give out of your abundance but it gets harder to give out of poverty. A good example in the Bible is the story poor widow who gave to God two mites, which was all that she had (Luke 21:1-4). Such sacrifice doesn't go unnoticed to God. You can also give a sacrifice of praise- praising God even when everything is not going your way and when you don't feel like praising. Related post: Sow in the Spirit.
4. Persevering through trials - God has good plans for us and He gives us many promises but sometimes we have to go through the desert before we get to the promised land. So in the desert season we could sow in tears by being thankful for what we have and moving forward, not giving up in the face of opposition and discouragement. To keep loving, forgiving, serving, working where we are at even when it's hard. Related post: A Call to Persevere.
5. Preaching the Word of God- Sowing words of Truth, Love and Hope into the lives of others is not in vain. God says “For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven and do not return there but water the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it. (Isaiah 55:10-11) So you may not see any results immediately or you may see negative results but don't be discouraged. Don't give up. Keep on sowing. God is working behind the scenes. The harvest shall come. Love never fails =)

Breakthrough is coming!!! :D Take a listen to this powerful song. I like what he said at the end, "It's a time of favor! It's a time of rain! It's a time of increase! It's a time of harvest! It's a time for reaping..."

There's a time for everything under the sun..."a time to weep, and a time to laugh; 

a time to mourn, and a time to dance"(Ecclesiastes 3: 4)

"Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted." (Matthew 5:4)

"weeping may last through the night, but joy comes with the morning" (Psalm 30:5b)

"I will repay you for the years the locusts have eaten--the great locust and the young locust, the other locusts and the locust swarm--my great army that I sent among you. You will have plenty to eat, until you are full, and you will praise the name of the LORD your God, who has worked wonders for you; never again will my people be shamed." (Joel 2: 25-26)

 :-)

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