Comfort: Caringly responding to a hurting person through words, actions, emotional responses, and physical touch; hurting with and for others in the midst of their grief or pain. (Romans 12: 15 NASB; Matthew 5:4: 2 Corinthians 1:3-4)
Have you ever had such hurt that you cried out to Jesus? Nothing anyone could say or do, nothing makes sense in the circumstance and a cry out to Jesus is the only way to address the hurt you are feeling? It is what they call “A come to Jesus meeting!”
Maybe it was a loss so deep, so unexplained or expected that brought you to your knees crying out to the One Who brings Hope! I have been here a few times in my life, and I always wonder how others could survive through such pain without the comfort, love and care that Jesus provides.
2 Corinthians 3-4 says: Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.
God never wants our pain, growing , and understanding to go to waste. Someone in your circle of influence may be in a period of life that they need to hear your story of God’s comfort. As we experience God, He often uses what we have experienced with Him to help others! I love that! If I had to go through (name the difficult circumstance) ____________________, how wonderful that God could use it to help someone else? My experience seems to make more sense, knowing it could help comfort someone else!
Neither Linda nor I (Dave) believe God puts us through pain uncaringly just so we can help others, but as Linda stated above, God doesn’t waste our sorrows.
Would you think about a time when God poured comfort into your heart? How did He do it? Were you changed because of it? How did His comfort help you bring comfort to someone in your circle of influence?
I, (Linda) will share a few of the times God brought me comfort. There have been many, but I will share these two. I lost a baby at 14 weeks. I was devastated. My husband and I had prayed for this baby for over a year, and then it took us a year to get pregnant- just to lose the child barely into the fourth month. On top of that I was informed that I shouldn’t have more children.
2nd: I watched my mom die. Her life experience was so painful, and it broke me that her death was so difficult. I watched her gasp for air, and she suffered so much in her last hours.
God gave me such comfort in these two circumstances. With our baby…He held me. I remember a day when I cried so desperately on my back porch. God came and gave my heart a comfort beyond understanding. His Holy Spirit lives in me. He is called “The Comforter”.
When my mom passed, I was in a hotel room alone, and I cried the deepest tears I have ever known, but I felt God comfort me. I had so many unanswered questions, but I felt God so near to me. His love brought me near to His heart.
Yes, life-moments can be so hard, but isn’t it wonderful that our past experience could help someone else?
Do you need the comfort that only Jesus could bring today? Maybe you just need to tell Him, “Jesus, I hurt!”
That verse we wrote above –
2 Corinthians 1:3-4 gives a clear signal to us that others may be used to comfort us in the way He can use us to comfort others. God has our life’s pain covered. Won’t you take your pain to Him and ask for the loving comfort He longs to give you?