If we allow others the margin for sorrow, they may just extend it back to us. In doing, we help each other's measure of happiness to increase.

One of the most taboo issues in Christianity (in my opinion) is sorrow and sadness.  Is it ok for a Christian to be sad?  Am I not right with God if I am sad?  It’s high time we address these shadows of our hearts.

We do not allow ourselves, and especially others, any emotional margin for sadness.  We have made sadness shameful, but in the process, we have become shallow and plastic.  Even the Lord Jesus was described as “a Man of Sorrows and acquainted with grief.” On the eve of His betrayal, He stated that His soul was exceedingly sorrowful, even unto death.   Was the Lord guilty of sin for being a Man of Sorrows?  Was He guilty of not having joy or neglecting to rejoice always?  Of course not.

We can be sad while maintaining our heart’s joy.  Sadness does not preclude one from rejoicing in the Lord always.  Rejoicing doesn’t mean to be giddy with happiness.  Rather, it refers to a state of thankfulness.  It is not incongruous to feel sorrow and give thanks simultaneously.  David did it all the time.  I am pretty sure that is why the Psalms are so beloved.

God can be worshipped just as much from our joy as He can our sorrow.  The presence of sadness does not automatically indicate the absence of faith.  While in prison, Paul prayed that Epaphraditus’ health would be spared “lest he should have sorrow upon sorrow.”  Those words were penned in Philippians as Paul was stressing the theme of rejoicing and joy.

We are so fearful of being vulnerable with each other.  We continue to be stifled and suffocated behind our masks.  We greet each other in church with plastic smiles and fake realities in order to continue worshipping at the Pharisaical altar of image and “testimony.”

There is a time to rejoice and a time to be sad.  There is a time to rejoice with those that rejoice and a time to weep with those that weep.  Sure, we may not always be sad for the right reasons; but it doesn’t mean that you still not sad.  As we grow in grace, we will increasingly become more sorrowful over certain realities and less sorrowful over others.  Sorrow, however, will not completely dissipate.

Maybe it’s time to be an example of the believer in the conduct and expression of our sorrow.  Maybe it’s time to allow others to bear your burden.  Maybe it’s time to let the truth set you free.  Maybe it’s time to be vulnerable and confess your faults to one another.  Maybe it’s time to encourage others to tear down their walls and rip off their masks by you leading the way.  Maybe it’s time to stop being lonely by asking for a friend.  Maybe it’s time to allow ourselves to be sad.  It just may lead to new heights of joy.

I think it’s time.