– Scripture:
Not long after that, Jesus went to the village of Nain. His disciples were with him, along with quite a large crowd. As they approached the village gate, they met a funeral procession—a woman’s only son was being carried out for burial. And the mother was a widow. When Jesus saw her, his heart broke. He said to her, “Don’t cry.” Then he went over and touched the coffin. The pallbearers stopped. He said, “Young man, I tell you: Get up.” The dead son sat up and began talking. Jesus presented him to his mother.
Luke 7:11–15 MSG
– Reflection:
Sorrow Into Joy
In Luke 7, a funeral procession was coming toward Jesus. They were going to bury a widow’s only son after she’d already buried her husband. You can imagine the pain she was dealing with. When Jesus saw her, “His heart broke.” God sees when you’re hurting. He sees when you’re lonely. When you feel so overwhelmed that you don’t think you can go on, He is moved with compassion. Jesus went over to the woman and said, “You’re weeping now, but I’m about to turn your great sorrow into great joy.” He raised her boy from the dead, turning her tears into joy.
Where do we go from here?
Sometimes life gets tough. You shed tears from hurts, from a bad medical report, from a child who breaks your heart, from dreams that don’t work out. I want you to see that it is not how your story ends. We serve a turnaround, God. As with this woman, He’s going to step in and turn the sorrow into joy, the brokenness into wholeness, and the mourning into dancing.
Our Prayer for Today
Father, thank You for the dreams and promises, and relationships You put in my heart. Thank You that You see when I’m hurting and overwhelmed and that You are moved with compassion. I declare that You are the turnaround God to whatever I am facing. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.