Let's talk about hope in the middle of adversity

In Psalm 126, verses 5 & 6, we read:
	Those who sow in tears shall reap with joyful shouting.
	He who goes to and fro weeping, carrying his bag of seed,
	Shall indeed come again with a shout of joy, bringing his
		sheaves with him.

	This passage is part of a psalm written by one who returned
to Judah after the Persian king allowed the Babylonian captives
to return to their lands.
	The message to his fellow Jewish returnees was, "Don't give
up. Plant your seed when times seem difficult, and at the harvest
you will find joy."
	There are times when we must carry on, even though we cannot
see the end. Times are tough, and we fear that we will never be
able to make it.
	Perhaps you lose your job. The finance company is about to
grab your car. The heat is going to be cut off. Even your
telephone has been cut off.
	You pray, but all you hear is, "Trust Me." everyone is
blaming you for making the wrong choices. You are looking for the
Lord to magically bale you out, but the problems just keep coming
and all you hear is, "Trust Me!" What do you do?
	Trust him. Keep going. Take it one week, one day, even one
moment at a time. Because you have asked God to help you, there
are things happening in the background you do not know about.
	You may feel tempted to beat on God every time things get
uncomfortable. Don't. Just trust him to carry you through to the
end. He won't fail.
	I like playing solitaire. Sometimes, in the middle of the
game, I come to a point where there is only one move open. It
just seems like I caan never win. But I carry on, and each move
just seems to lead to another. Then suddenly the game opens up,
and I have a winning hand.
	Life often seems like that. God hasn't promised to keep us
from facing hard times; he does promise to keep us through hard
times. That's why he says, "Don't give up planting your seed."
In the end, the harvest will repay our efforts many times over!

verses quoted from the New American Standard Bible. (c) The Lockman Foundation, 1960, 1973.

Script copyright © Rick Galbraith, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada: 1996, 2001

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