Lord, Make Us Glad!

Have you ever been in a hard season, just hoping the phone would ring, an email would come in, something with good news to brighten the day?

In Psalm 4:7 David says,

“You have put more joy in my heart

than they have when their grain and wine abound.” 

Increase in grain and wine might equate to our getting a raise, that promotion, a relationship taking a good turn, our child making the team, or a grade going up. Good news can lift our spirits. But what about those seasons when the news is loss of a job, less income, a broken relationship, not making the team, or a disappointing grade? David isn’t saying his gladness came because good news came. He’s saying gladness in His heart from God is greater than the gladness we get from earthly good news. It is constant and based on eternal things that can’t be moved or taken from us. God’s promises are astounding and can get us through the darkest of storms with great spiritual triumph.

This world can be full of disappointment, but God’s Word is full of good news. Our goal is to keep our eyes on Him and meditate on His Word even in times of sadness, disappointment, injustice, and grief. He will keep us strong in Him, rather than prey for the enemy in this volatile world. We want to set our hearts on things that can’t change or disappoint, so that like David we can say,

“Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me

all the days of my life,

and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD

forever.”

Psalm 23:6