“There was evening and there was morning—one day” (the first day. Gen. 1:5b).  “So long as the earth exists… day and night will not cease” (Gen. 8:22).   “Joy comes in the morning! “(Ps. 30:5b).

One of my daughters-in-law sent me some photos from the beautiful sunrise in their backyard. She captioned them, “Too pretty not to share.” The scenes immediately reminded me of the scriptures above (and more) so I chose these four pictures for a quick encouragement to whomever could be blessed by this visual from the Creator.

Remember, Psalm 30:5a says that weeping (/ sadness / darkness) may endure for a night (a set period of time). That’s a probability (it may happen from time to time); but the rest of the verse states a certainty for the people of God (“His faithful ones” – verse 5). The absolute certainty is that while the earth remains, morning is surely going to follow the night, and as the Scripture says, “Joy comes in the morning.”

Whether your morning dawns here or in eternity, joy will come in the morning! Looking to the east (the direction from which the sun rises) to watch for its rising, is like looking to the Source of our joy for the timely bursting forth of His promises! Let’s fix our eyes on the Source of our joy; or, if He seems hidden by the darkness of night, let’s seek Him where He may be found (in His Scriptures, among His people, in the beauty of His creation), and watch for the sunrise (the ‘Son-rise’) that will surely come!

Hosea 6:3 says, “Let us strive to know Adonai (the LORD). Like dawn His going forth is certain. He will come to us…”

In these pictures the sun is rising over a snow-covered landscape, but if that illustration doesn’t impact you, imagine the one that faced Elijah in 1 Kings 17-18. Drought and famine… a drought that he had actually called for, in his authority as God’s fiery prophet in that time and place. (1 Kings 17:1, James 5:17)  This distress had lasted three and a half years when Elijah finally had a showdown with King Ahab and the prophets of Baal on Mount Carmel (1 Kings 18) which ended with all the survivors acknowledging “Adonai, He is God! Adonai, He is God!”

Now Elijah had to ‘look to the east’ (the Source), for the long ‘night’ of drought to be broken – broken not by a sunrise, but by a downpour of rain (as God had promised him – 1 Kings 18:1).  Let the Scripture minister directly to you from here on. It speaks for itself.
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41 Then Elijah said to Ahab, “Go up, eat and drink, for there’s the sound of rain.” (Prophetic sound, based on God’s promise.) 42 So Ahab went up to eat and drink. Elijah went up to the top of Carmel, crouched on the ground and put his face between his knees (praying). 43 Then he said to his servant, “Go up now, look toward the sea.”

So he went up, looked, and said, “There’s nothing.”

Then he said, “Go back”—seven times— (still praying) 44 and it was the seventh time that he said, “Look! A cloud as small as a man’s hand is rising from the sea.”

Then he said, “Go up, say to Ahab, ‘Harness your chariot and go down before the rain stops you.’”

45 In a little while the sky grew black with clouds and wind, and there was a heavy rain!
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Whether you’re looking for a sunrise to end a dark night, or a heavy rain to break a long drought, look to the Source!