Daily Direction Reading PlanSample

Did you ever dream you were enjoying a delicious meal or on a hilarious vacation only to wake up and realize it was just a dream? Apparently, ancient Israel had that experience many times while they were in exile. At night, they would dream they were back at home only to wake up and realize they were still in captivity. So when they finally returned, the psalmist wrote about it in Psalm 126. He wrote, “When the LORD brought back his exiles to Jerusalem, it was like a dream. “We were filled with laughter, and we sang for joy. And the other nations said, “What amazing things the LORD has done for them.” Their joy must have been like that of African American slaves when their long nightmare of servitude ended. The Israelites realized, certainly as African Americans did, that even though they had their freedom, they needed God’s help to build a future for themselves. So the prayer of the psalmist became, “Restore our fortunes, LORD, as streams renew the desert.” They encouraged themselves with this truth: “Those who plant in tears will harvest with shouts of joy. They weep as they go to plant their seed, but they sing as they return with the harvest.” All God’s children should know that tears could be seeds that grow into a harvest of joy. Especially for those who love God’s Son, Jesus Christ, God delights to bring good out of tragedy.