You changed my sorrow into dancing. You took away my clothes of sadness and clothed me in happiness. I will sing to You and not be silent. Lord, my God, I will praise You forever! (vs11-12)
Mourning. Sorrow. Gut-wrenching sobs searching for relief from the grief wracking our bodies and breaking our hearts. Loss. A death of someone or a death to something we had our hope in. This is a place we've all been in. But, oh, the pure, unadulterated joy that makes one want to burst when things turn around. Or when we are far enough past the grief,and our precious God, in His healing timetable, shows us all the things to have hope in again.
A very dear friend of mine said once, "I am sad for those who do not believe in God. Who do they thank when things go right?" (Thanks, Deb.) Exactly!! Who do we high-five? To Whom can we say: "I knew You would answer my prayer!!"
If we know our Father drives the rhythm of our lives, then we are assured He will work all things for our good because He loves us. Weeping lasts a night, joy comes in the morning. The promise of joy again. That there is a flip side to the weeping......it is dancing feet and different apparel. It is what Jesus came to do.
The Lord God has put His Spirit in Me because the Lord has appointed me to tell the good news to the poor. He has sent Me to comfort the broken hearted and to tell the captives they are free and to tell the prisoners they are released......He has sent me to comfort all those who are sad....I will give them a crown to replace their ashes, and the oil of gladness to replace their sorrow and clothes of praise to replace their spirit of sadness. Isaiah 61
I love this picture. Imagine a hostage being let go alive by the captor! Imagine a prisoner released from jail, pronounced innocent! Imagine a homeless, jobless woman given a lottery ticket and a new house! Imagine a heart broken mother who has lost her child finding that, against all odds, she is once again pregnant! Jesus came to redeem us in very practical ways. To set our mourning feet a-dancing with the knowledge that He has healed our woundedness and answered our neediness in a way that only God can do. Joy unspeakable! Because what we know when we have these answered prayers is that He acknowledges us....sees us. Like the Father saw His Son on the cross. Shook the earth as He held it in His hands, knowing He would not destroy it, but wanting to all the same. Turned the world black for a while, as His Son made payment for our sins. Mourning. Wailing. Earthquakes. Betrayal. All followed as our Jesus felt the loss of His friends and ultimately His Father: "Father! Father! Why have You (even You) forsaken Me?"
God did not leave His own Son in the grave, wrapped in anointed burial clothes. NO! Mourning was turned to dancing again for our Jesus lives! What is He wearing now?
I turned to see Who was talking to me. When I turned, I saw seven golden lampstands and someone among the lampstands who was like a Son of Man. He was dressed in a long robe and had a gold band around his chest. His head and hair were white like wool, as white as snow, and his eyes were like flames of fire. His feet were like bronze that glows hot in a furnace, and His voice was like the sound of flooding waters. He held seven stars in His right hand and a sharp double-edged sword came out of His mouth. He looked like the sun shining at its brightest time.
"Do not be afraid," He said. "I am the First and the Last. I am the One Who lives! I was dead, but look, I am alive forever." Revelation 1
Even death and the mourning it brings is changed to dancing in an instant. It is the last enemy, and even it is overcome. We will rise and say with Him one day, "See, I was dead, but look, I live!" Because redemption and restoration is God's whole aim. He will not leave us in loss. We will never be abandoned. Though rich or poor, good or bad, the same things befall us all. Our confidence, however, as children of our Father is that He will turn our sorrow into dancing! We will rise from it and rejoice! There is a time to weep....and a time to DANCE!!! Hope today you're dancing.
Mourning. Sorrow. Gut-wrenching sobs searching for relief from the grief wracking our bodies and breaking our hearts. Loss. A death of someone or a death to something we had our hope in. This is a place we've all been in. But, oh, the pure, unadulterated joy that makes one want to burst when things turn around. Or when we are far enough past the grief,and our precious God, in His healing timetable, shows us all the things to have hope in again.
A very dear friend of mine said once, "I am sad for those who do not believe in God. Who do they thank when things go right?" (Thanks, Deb.) Exactly!! Who do we high-five? To Whom can we say: "I knew You would answer my prayer!!"
If we know our Father drives the rhythm of our lives, then we are assured He will work all things for our good because He loves us. Weeping lasts a night, joy comes in the morning. The promise of joy again. That there is a flip side to the weeping......it is dancing feet and different apparel. It is what Jesus came to do.
The Lord God has put His Spirit in Me because the Lord has appointed me to tell the good news to the poor. He has sent Me to comfort the broken hearted and to tell the captives they are free and to tell the prisoners they are released......He has sent me to comfort all those who are sad....I will give them a crown to replace their ashes, and the oil of gladness to replace their sorrow and clothes of praise to replace their spirit of sadness. Isaiah 61
I love this picture. Imagine a hostage being let go alive by the captor! Imagine a prisoner released from jail, pronounced innocent! Imagine a homeless, jobless woman given a lottery ticket and a new house! Imagine a heart broken mother who has lost her child finding that, against all odds, she is once again pregnant! Jesus came to redeem us in very practical ways. To set our mourning feet a-dancing with the knowledge that He has healed our woundedness and answered our neediness in a way that only God can do. Joy unspeakable! Because what we know when we have these answered prayers is that He acknowledges us....sees us. Like the Father saw His Son on the cross. Shook the earth as He held it in His hands, knowing He would not destroy it, but wanting to all the same. Turned the world black for a while, as His Son made payment for our sins. Mourning. Wailing. Earthquakes. Betrayal. All followed as our Jesus felt the loss of His friends and ultimately His Father: "Father! Father! Why have You (even You) forsaken Me?"
God did not leave His own Son in the grave, wrapped in anointed burial clothes. NO! Mourning was turned to dancing again for our Jesus lives! What is He wearing now?
I turned to see Who was talking to me. When I turned, I saw seven golden lampstands and someone among the lampstands who was like a Son of Man. He was dressed in a long robe and had a gold band around his chest. His head and hair were white like wool, as white as snow, and his eyes were like flames of fire. His feet were like bronze that glows hot in a furnace, and His voice was like the sound of flooding waters. He held seven stars in His right hand and a sharp double-edged sword came out of His mouth. He looked like the sun shining at its brightest time.
"Do not be afraid," He said. "I am the First and the Last. I am the One Who lives! I was dead, but look, I am alive forever." Revelation 1
Even death and the mourning it brings is changed to dancing in an instant. It is the last enemy, and even it is overcome. We will rise and say with Him one day, "See, I was dead, but look, I live!" Because redemption and restoration is God's whole aim. He will not leave us in loss. We will never be abandoned. Though rich or poor, good or bad, the same things befall us all. Our confidence, however, as children of our Father is that He will turn our sorrow into dancing! We will rise from it and rejoice! There is a time to weep....and a time to DANCE!!! Hope today you're dancing.
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