For the "In-Between" Times of Life

Psalm 126 is one of my favorites because I can relate to it oh-so often. It's what I refer to as a psalm for the "in-between" times:

Psalm 126

When the LORD brought back the captives to Zion, we were like men who dreamed.  Our mouths were filled with laughter, our tongues with songs 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 are filled with joy.

Restore our fortunes, O LORD, like streams in the Negev.

Those who sow in tears will reap with songs of joy. He who goes out weeping, carrying seed to sow, will return with songs of joy, carrying sheaves with him.

In my previous Bible study in Grand Rapids last spring, we studied Beth Moore’s “Psalms of Ascent,” and looked at this particular psalm. It tells how the people are bemoaning their current situation in light of how God once blessed them so much . They desire those times again and beg God, “Restore our fortunes, LORD.” (Oh, the times when I've longed for the past like that!)

And yet, the beauty of this psalm is that they hold on to hope.

We don't do much sowing or carrying sheaves nowadays, but it's those last two sentences that grow wings and come alive to me. Look at how they talk about “sow[ing] in tears” and “go[ing] out weeping, carrying seed to sow.”

As we studied this psalm, I saw the power in these two lines: How these people pressed forward in spite of their current hardships: they continued planting…because they knew that the Lord would come along at some point and bring harvest to their actions. In spite of the discouragement and disappointment they're experiencing now--in spite of the circumstances that they face today--they look to God for hope and  hold fast to faith.

In other words, they trust not in what they can see, but in God's Word and promises.

Ecclesiastes 11:4 says this another way: “If you worry about the weather and don’t plant seeds, you won’t harvest a crop.” Even when skies are bleak or stars aren’t aligned, we have to set out and press on. We can't let the looming weather steer us away from the task at hand.

That to me is “a leap of faith.” Even if we don’t see fruit or hope immediately, we don’t give up. We continue on: asking, praying, doing, and ultimately trusting in Psalm 27:13-14: “I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.”

I often find myself in moments where I’m wishing I were already at the finish line, able to look back and smile appreciatively at everything in hindsight. Like with the unknown about our job situations or where we'll end up settling down. And yet, I know that what I do now--sowing with bold prayers, planting seeds by continuing to tithe rather than give in to the urge to stockpile finances, etc.--will bring about a harvest...when the time is right.

Related Posts
Making the Psalms Your Own
Learning to Plant In Spite of Stormy Weather

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