We all go through seasons of struggle, seasons when we’re dealing with an illness, the loss of a loved one, a relationship that didn't work out. We don't understand. It's not fair. It's easy to think that the suffering, the struggle, and the weeping is the way it's always going to be. I recently met a young family after the father had just been diagnosed with a serious illness. He and his wife held their little children and wept and wept, so devastated. God never promised that we wouldn't have seasons of weeping, seasons of struggle. But Jesus says, "Blessed are those who weep now, for in due time you will laugh" (Luke 6:21). God promises that the suffering is only for a season. The weeping is not how your story ends. You're going to laugh again. God sees what you're going through. He knows what wasn't fair, the lonely nights, the pain, the heartache. The Scripture says, "He has collected all my tears in His bottle" (Psalm 56:8). You may have felt alone, but He's been right there with you. The good news is that He's not going to leave you in suffering. He's not going to leave you brokenhearted, weighed down with burdens.
The apostle Peter says, "After you have suffered a little while" (1 Peter 5:10). He didn't say for your whole life or the next twenty years, but "after a little while." He goes on to say, "God Himself will strengthen you, establish you, and put you back on your feet." You may be in a season of suffering, a season of struggle. You may feel your health, your marriage, or your finances are never going to get better. No, God Himself is about to step in and do what only He can do. When you see how He restores you, how He pays you back for what was unfair, how He brings you out better, your mourning is going to be turned to dancing, your sorrow turned to joy, your weeping turned to laughter. Don't believe those lies that you'll always be lonely, you'll always mourn the loss, always be brokenhearted over your child. No, your time is coming.
The psalmist says, "Weeping may endure for a night, but joy is coming in the morning" (Psalm 30:5). Notice that weeping "may" endure, which means it’s not certain, it’s questionable. But here's the promise--joy is coming. Not maybe, not hope so, not there's a good chance. The Most High God says that joy is on the way. You're going to laugh again, you're going to dream again, you’re going to love again. You're going to see God's blessing in such a way that all you can do is laugh. Get ready to laugh in amazement, laugh in gratitude, laugh with songs of joy.