“Joy in the Morning” / “Morning will Come”

I remember the first time Psalm 30:5 spoke to me so deeply; “Weeping may tarry for the night, but joy comes in the morning.” It was 2008 & were walking through a very deep valley & needed encouragement – those words became something firm for us to stand on, so we wrote them into a song that we demoed with the band for the SONGS FROM THE HOPE FARM release, but it just didn’t feel finished, & the message was so dear to my heart that I wanted to make sure it was truly finished before I recorded & released it.

So, I rewrote it. I rewrote “Joy in the Morning” so many times that it became a joke among my band members. I’d say, “Guys, should we play ‘Joy’?“, & they’d respond – “I don’t know – which one?“, & we’d all have a good laugh.

So, I shelved it to return to later. But the significance of that verse & the song never left my mind.

Fast forward to 2016 – I was on a songwriting trip to Nashville, hanging with my friend Mark Seigel & he pitched me an entirely new melody idea that set me on fire. Then my friend & sometimes guitarist/sometimes co-producer & all-around talented guy Jamie Miley pitched me a guitar hook that also pushed the song again to the forefront of my imagination. Next, my brother-in-law McKendree sent me some very unique electronic selections, creating a bed on which to build an instrumental outro. I was excited about the song again, but still stumped – what was a I missing from the first verse?

The sun is all the more beautiful when seen breaking through storm clouds: Ian Zumback & I spent one very late night via a video call (he had pulled over during a break from his Uber driving) exploring the depths from which joy can break through, & finally the song felt FINISHED. The final version was so long that we split it into two songs: “Joy in the Morning”, & the title track, “Morning will Come”.

I hope these lyrics encourage you during these tumultuous times as they have encouraged me! “Weeping may stay overnight, but joy comes in the morning!“