“And those the Lord has rescued will return. They will enter Zion with sing; everlasting joy will crown their heads. Gladness and joy will overtake them, and sorrow and sighing will flee away.” (Isaiah 35:10 NIV)
There is a rescue underway and we’ll know it’s complete when we are overtaken by gladness and joy. Revel in that a moment; have you ever been overtaken by gladness and joy? And even if you have had such an experience, has it ever lasted long-term? So often we are overtaken by sorrow, not joy. Sadness swells up and threatens to wash us away, not joy.
Look again at our text: “everlasting joy will crown their heads.” Joy will guard our minds and fill our hearts. Joy that isn’t temporary, but perpetual. Uncircumstantial, unfading and unflinching in nature. Joy that sweeps in unexpectedly and marks our existence from that day forward. Joy that won’t wear out. Joy that we can’t walk away from. The Message says “all sorrows and sighs will scurry into the night.”
Maybe you need to rest in this promise of joy this Christmas? Perhaps it’s still night in your personal world? Have hope, beloved. Even in our deepest dark, we can lean into the truth that joy is coming for us. The dawn the a Kingdom age will one day split the sky with light, with the restoration of all things and to top it off, everlasting joy.
Isn’t this the angel’s message to a bunch of sleep shepherds in a dark field a few thousand years ago?
“Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all people.” (Luke 2:10 NIV)
We have a Savior and that altars everything. Unspeakable, unstoppable joy is en route to us this Christmas and every Christmas hereafter until the night sky fills anew with angel chores and joy makes it’s home in us forever.
Lord, we look past the night we see now with complete confidence in the coming dawn. We know You are coming for us and when You do, our joy will be complete. We borrow from that promise this Christmas. Fill our hearts with hope as we wait on Your return. Amen.