Psalm 56:8  “You keep track of all my sorrows.  You have collected all my tears in Your bottle.  You have recorded each one in Your book.”

In this verse, the psalmist opens our eyes to the tenderness of God’s compassion for us. Think about the love that He has for you in this verse. You keep a record of all of my disappointments.  It appears like you have gathered all of my tears into your bottle.  Your book contains a record of each and every one of them.

One never throws away a tear or a grief, and there is never a wasted sorrow.  They are all recorded by God!  How great is His love! How reassuring it is to know that we have a God Who cares for us so deeply.

Peter must have experienced that same kind of response in his failure when He denied knowing Christ three times.  Luke records what happened when Peter denied knowing Christ for the third time.

Luke 22:61-62  “At that moment the Lord turned and looked at Peter.  Suddenly, the Lord’s words flashed through Peter’s mind: ‘Before the rooster crows tomorrow morning, you will deny three times that you even know Me.’ And Peter left the courtyard, weeping bitterly.”

The thoughts that must have been going through Peter’s head when Jesus gazed at him from a distance, are simply beyond my comprehension.  What he had vowed he would never do – he just did!  With bitter tears, he wept in defeat.  Yet, his failure wasn’t final!  His sorrow wasn’t wasted, and his tears were not forgotten.  When Jesus rose from the dead, He personally met with Peter to restore him!

When we bring our failures to Christ, they are never considered to be final.  It is possible for us to access the same power that was used to raise Jesus from the grave. This power will enable us to resurrect His purpose within us and accomplish things that we would never be able to accomplish on our own.

Because you have a Heavenly Father who gathers all of your tears in His bottle, regardless of whether your sadness is the consequence of a personal failing or loss or circumstances that are beyond your control, you are at peace. Don’t let your sorrows go to waste.  God promises to turn them into joy.

Psalm 30:5  “Weeping may last through the night, but joy comes with the morning.”