The Sorrow of Believers

Psalm 13:2 How long shall I take counsel in my soul, having sorrow in my heart daily? how long shall mine enemy be exalted over me?

It is perfectly normal for believers to have sorrow, there are many examples of biblical figures having sorrow, for all manner of reasons: from riches to grief, from repentance to knowledge, loss to defeat. There are perfectly good reasons to be sorrowful, it is okay. Nobody is above it: it was alluded to that Jesus was a man of sorrows and bore our sorrow: he carried the sadness of the world upon himself.

Psalm 38:17 For I am ready to halt, and my sorrow is continually before me.

The sorrow spoken of is no small matter, it put great figures such as King David on the brink of giving up, Elijah and Jonah pleaded for God to end their lives. Thank the Lord that He kept them on course to endure to the end. Some biblical figures ended their lives: often these were disobedient or unbelieving like Saul and Judas, they reaped the fruit of their sins rather than be forgiven.

Psalm 127:2 It is vain for you to rise up early, to sit up late, to eat the bread of sorrows: for so he giveth his beloved sleep.

God does not want his children to be sorrowful: as well as giving advice like not dwelling on it, such as when Jesus said do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself, He gives reasons for sorrow which we can guard against, we can avoid piercing ourselves with many sorrows through coveting riches, this is a good reason why we should be obedient and not sow bad fruits.

Isaiah 14:3 And it shall come to pass in the day that the Lord shall give thee rest from thy sorrow, and from thy fear, and from the hard bondage wherein thou wast made to serve,

There will be an end to our sorrows, this is God's will and He has declared it, so we should always strive onward looking hopefully towards tomorrow. Wait upon the Lord and renew your strength.

Isaiah 53:4 Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows:

God wants us to cast our cares upon Him, for He cares for us. We can put our faith into Him that He will not leave nor forsake us. We have a mighty advocate on our side fighting for us and we know that He will never let us down for He has a plan for us and thoughts of peace, not of evil.

Jeremiah 31:25 For I have satiated the weary soul, and I have replenished every sorrowful soul.

God is near to those with a broken heart, He knows your pain and sorrow and can and will help you through everything you will ever face. Never give up because God can work all things for the good of those who believe, no matter how bad that they might seem. God has helped every sorrowful soul overcome and He can certainly help you also, trust Him at His word, He does not lie.

Ecclesiastes 7:3 Sorrow is better than laughter: for by the sadness of the countenance the heart is made better.

Sorrow and sadness can actually be beneficial and better than happiness and laughter as they can bring about good characteristics in people. They can help to turn people away from harmful things and towards good things, most of all sorrow and sadness can turn people towards God.

2 Corinthians 7:9 Now I rejoice, not that ye were made sorry, but that ye sorrowed to repentance: for ye were made sorry after a godly manner

When you are sad about sinning make sure to use it the right way, to learn from it and become obedient and lessen the sorrow in your life by living in a godly manner. Do not do as the worldly do and carry on, getting worse and never learning or changing from it, or God forbid: giving up.

John 16:22 And ye now therefore have sorrow: but I will see you again, and your heart shall rejoice, and your joy no man taketh from you.

It is absolutely normal for believers to have sorrow, do not think for a second that there is something wrong with you in particular for this. Do not believe any of the devils lies that God does not love you or that you are unsaved and there is no hope for you. Trust in God: your future is brighter than you can even imagine and He will always love you and never forsake you, He is with you always.

Revelation 21:4 And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.