Joy Comes in the Morning

December 10, 2022

Psalm 30:5 - For his anger lasts only a moment, but his favor lasts a lifetime; weeping may stay for the night, but rejoicing comes in the morning.

In this chapter, David is praising God and remembering how good God was to him in forgiving him of his sins, and healing him from the plague that had fallen on Israel.  Satan had encouraged David to take a census of the people, against God’s wishes, which you can read about in 1 Chronicles 21:1. Many thousands of people died during the plague, but God cut it short after David prayed for forgiveness.

From this experience, David learned that God is merciful. His anger was short-lived. God had disciplined David and he had wept through the night, but his joy returned when the discipline was over. 

Nobody goes through life for very long without something happening that causes us sorrow or disappointment. There are many times that we experience pain and difficulty because of our own actions, our attitude or even because we just don’t care about the consequences.  The good news is, God’s anger at our disobedience is short lived when we ask for forgiveness. 

David knew how it felt to be surrounded by scary circumstances. He understood that he needed to cling to God when things seemed hopeless.  We’ve all been there. How many of us have prayed through the night and felt like things would never get better? Sometimes it’s loneliness and hopelessness. But like David, this Psalm is one that we need to claim as our own. If midnight seems like your darkest hour, and the storms of life are closing in on you, remember, Joy does come in the morning. The sun will rise again, and joy will fill our hearts gain.