Joy Cometh in the Morning!

"Grief is the one pain that heals all others. Grief is the most important pain there is."

How People Grow
Henry Cloud and John Townsend

Gerald Sittser wrote in A Grace Disguised that “the choice to love requires the courage to grieve”. If we choose to love, our hearts will eventually be broken - death, abandonment, abuse, betrayal and for the birthmother, great sacrifice. But if we choose to protect our hearts in fear of the inevitable, we miss out on one of life's greatests treasures - Communing with another human soul.



Tears: the best gift of God to suffering Man.

John Keble (1792-1866)

And while grief can be overwhelming and for some, debilitating, our tears are not in vain. God sees our pain. He hears our cry for help. Psalm 56:8 says, "You keep track of all my sorrows. You have collected all my tears in your bottle. You have recorded each one in your book.

 . . . weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning" (Psalm 30:5)



Although there is not a direct correlation between this verse from scripture and individual suffering, there is also no scriptural problem with this interpretation.  God does promise his children that although we may suffer many trials while on this earth, there is a joy that is extended to all Christ-followers that comes from the hope we have in a better future.

I'm waiting for the joy...

I never  imagined that twenty years after placing my son for adoption,  I would begin to experience a pain so profound; a gutt wrenching, hard to breathe kind of ache in my heart that knaws away at my soul. Although human beings are resiliant, there is for some, a pain that is far too great to process. As a result, our heart shuts down and we move forward without resolution for years.

I am just now coming to terms with my loss - lost dreams, lost memories, the label of "mother" that I will never hear him speak. Tears flow freely these days. They come and go as they please. The only way through such a loss is hope - hope that one day I will figure out how to move on with my life while still maintaining a relationship with my son; hope that the intensity of my grief will subside and I will experience joy once again after twenty years of sadness. To be honest, I don't remember what it feels like. I hope to find out someday soon.