"Cure sometimes, treat often, comfort always" - Hippocrates
COMFORT has been getting a bad rap. Who doesn't want a state of physical ease and freedom from pain or constraints; well being; prosperity and the pleasant life-style secured by it? It seems the only way comfort is used nowadays is, 'the comfort zone,' - a place or situation where one feels safe or at ease and without stress.
Society has determined that staying in your comfort zone is a bad
thing...maybe. Comfort, as it's mostly used in Scripture, is the easing or alleviating of a person's feelings of grief or distress;
improving their mood and restoring a sense of well being. It means to
strengthen, to give support, and to console the disappointed. This comfort is what we're missing. Paul speaks eloquently of it in 2 Corinthians 1 (NLT):
3All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is our merciful Father and the source of all comfort. 4He
comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When
they are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has
given us. 5For the more we suffer for Christ, the more God will shower us with his comfort through Christ. 6Even
when we are weighed down with troubles, it is for your comfort and
salvation! For when we ourselves are comforted, we will certainly
comfort you. Then you can patiently endure the same things we suffer. 7 We are confident that as you share in our sufferings, you will also share in the comfort God gives us.Just reading that passage is soothing like a warm blanket. I recall the
MANY times the LORD has comforted me. Even now, after an extended time of trial; I've asked to live in an even longer period of God's comfort. We associate comfort with mourning after the loss of a loved one. The need for comfort extends beyond that to many other troubles and disappointments. We not only want God
to be there with us, we also need brothers and sisters in Christ to
come along side with the comfort they've received. This is a significant
ministry to which we've been called. Do you, or someone you know need comfort?The LORD through the prophet Isaiah spoke comfort over His people
. "Comfort,
O comfort My people," says your God. "Speak kindly to Jerusalem; And
call out to her, that her warfare has ended, That her iniquity has been
removed, That she has received of the LORD'S hand Double for all her
sins." (Isaiah 40:1-2) What a relief to know that the season has changed and the war is over! Whether it's announcing the cessation of the enemy's attack, or coming to the realization that you've been fully forgiven and released from punishment, or entering into a period of restoration
and getting double for your trouble...to be comforted, to be listened
to, to hear kind words, to know God cares for you, is crucial. To feel a warm embrace, whether in His presence or through His saints is sometimes all we need.
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