Crying Time – What kind of tears have you shed?

Jeremiah 50:4-5 -- "In those days, at that time," declares the LORD, "the people of Israel and the people of Judah together will go in tears to seek the LORD their God.  They will ask the way to Zion and turn their faces toward it. They will come and bind themselves to the LORD in an everlasting covenant that will not be forgotten.”

The prophet Jeremiah talks about seeking the Lord in tears.  Have you shed tears this week?  What kind of tears were they?  Were they tears of joy or tears of sadness?

We shed tears when

·         Our children are born

·         They graduate from high school

·         Our only daughter marries

·         Our son comes home from the war

·         We visit with our war buddy whom we haven’t seen or talked to in forty-one years

·         We hear an old song our mama loved

·         We finally get rain for our dry, dry crops

·         We finally get rain for our dry crops that ends up with hail which destroys everything

·         Our loved ones die and go home to be with Christ

Tears of joy and tears of sadness are intermingled.  It would do us well to be patient in judging events in our lives.  When something adverse happens to us, we shed tears in frustration only to find out in the long term it was for our good.  The tears of frustration become tears of joy. 

May your tears be tears of laughter and joy not sadness.  When they are tears of sadness, be patient until they turn to tears of joy.  The waiting is the hard part; patience is a hard lesson to learn but sometimes we must wait.  Wait for the tears of joy.  We wait for tears to be wiped away.  We wait for the “old order” of things to pass away.  We wait…

Revelation 21:4 – “He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away."