Focus

Be still and rest in the Lord.

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Read

Psalm 126

A Song of Ascents.

When the Lord restored the fortunes of Zion,
we were like those who dream.

Then our mouth was filled with laughter,
and our tongue with shouts of joy;
then it was said among the nations,
“The Lord has done great things for them.”

The Lord has done great things for us,
and we rejoiced.

Restore our fortunes, O Lord,
like the watercourses in the Negeb.

May those who sow in tears
reap with shouts of joy.

Those who go out weeping,
bearing the seed for sowing,
shall come home with shouts of joy,
carrying their sheaves.

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Reflect

As you are reading this, we are in the midst of the COVID “pandemic.” The time to see and find joy is not before or after the “pandemics” of our lives. But, hey, they happen. And when they do, we fuss, we fume, we fight. We must, each day, go out our doors, even if weeping, carrying seeds of joy to sow among the people we meet. And why should we?
* Because God calls us to persevere.
* Because God sustains us when we persevere.
* Because God rewards us when we persevere.
* Because we G-R-O-W when we persevere.
* Because at the other end of this pandemic stuff we will experience joy like we never really knew – joy that comes from perseverance. Colossians 1:11 (Living Bible) says: “11 We are praying, too, that you will be filled with his mighty, glorious strength so that you can keep going no matter what happens—always full of the joy of the Lord.”

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Pray

Dear God, thank you for always being faithful and perseverant with me. I pray for the strength to be perseverant with life, come what may. And I true that joy will come in the morning. Amen.

Go with God!