Monday Advent Devotion with Kitty Stapleton
Peace is our devotion theme for the third week of advent. The Hebrew word for peace is shalom, which signifies wholeness or well-being. As we wait for the fullness of God’s shalom through the second advent of Jesus, let us actively pursue peace in our lives and in the world around us.
Those who sow with tears
will reap with songs of joy.
Those who go out weeping,
carrying seed to sow,
will return with songs of joy,
carrying sheaves with them. - Psalm 126:5-6
As I read through the list of Bible verses trying to choose one to write about, I was struck by how appropriate the verses seemed to be for the current time.
For example, when I first read the fifth verse, the words were so comforting. They told me that although we are currently living through a terrible pandemic, we can look forward to better times. In the future, we will be able to “reap with songs of joy.”
Then I read the sixth verse. Wait a minute! I read…”carrying seed to sow.” Are we supposed to be working in God’s field during this time? I thought we were supposed to be staying at home! Are we supposed to be doing something to improve our future after the pandemic? I thought that God was going to bring us songs of joy!
Then I realized that while God will bring us “songs of joy”, He expects us to carry on Christ’s work—to continue to “sow” His love and to carry “sheaves” (others) with us to Him—even during a pandemic.