Comfort: March 19, 2013

TODAYS WORD FOR TUESDAY MARCH 19, 2013.

COMFORT

DEFINITION:

To sooth, console or reassure; to encourage, help, and strengthen; to comfort someone after a loss; relief in affliction; consolation; a feeling of relief.

SCRIPTURE:

If you have any encouragement from being unified with Christ, if any comfort from His love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, then make my joy complete by being like minded, having the same love, being one  in spirit accord and purpose. Philippians 2:1-2

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those who are in trouble, with the comfort we ourselves have received from God. II Corinthians 1:3-4.

Therefore comfort each other and edify one another, just as you also are doing. I Thessalonians 5:11.

KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:

Many of our friends today need comfort. We receive hundreds of emails each month from friends who read TODAY’S WORD who are in need of comfort because of sad or difficult situations they have to deal with. Unfortunately, most people rely on themselves, family, or friends for this comfort and it just does not meet the need that one is facing.

None of us go through life without being in need of comfort. We all experience sad and hurtful times in our life when we are in need of comfort and reassurance. In those times in our life we need to have someone who is there for us, someone we can turn to and receive love and compassion and support.

As we mentioned above we have had communication from many new and old friends that are looking for comfort because of the trial they are going through. We have responded by assuring them of our prayers and sharing with them scripture that relates to their specific need. Many that we hear from are suffering from persecution because of their faith in Christ. Others are facing deep family concerns such as a loss of a loved one, loss of a home, all sorts of economic concerns, illness, a troubled marriage, concern for their children, and much more.

Even though we can give comforting words to those we hear from daily, the only real comfort comes from our Lord. The verses that we have written above give us the assurance that God our Father will comfort us in all of our troubles. This is an assurance that we all have every day, if we are believers and children of God.

In the three verses we have listed above, we look at the word comfort from two different perspectives. First, and most important, the comfort we receive as believers from Christ. And secondly, the comfort that God gives us so we can comfort each other.

We will have times of trouble in our life that causes pain and sorrow. God in His love for us does not want us to be without comfort in our times of distress. God, our heavenly Father, is the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort. He alone is the true source of our comfort.

God has His purposes for allowing suffering and sorrow in our lives. It is only in our times of needing comfort that we can experience God’s compassionate comfort. God’s comfort does not make our troubles and sorrows go away. His comfort gives us strength, encouragement, and hope to endure and carry on.

God expects us, as believers, to comfort others in their time of need. We must have experienced God’s comfort in order to be equipped to comfort others. We have the responsibility of comforting others in their time of need, reminding them of the comfort God can give them when they turn their lives over to Him. We are also to comfort others by reminding them of God’s saving grace and the soon coming again to this earth by Jesus. Where can one receive more comfort than with this assurance even in ones worst time of tribulation?

Children, when they are growing up rely heavily on the comfort they can receive from a parent, sibling or grandparent. We can remember many times when one of our children would get hurt. They fell down and skinned an elbow or a knee and came into the house crying like they had broken every bone in their body but just sitting on mom’s or dad’s lap healed that hurt in about five minutes.

Our children found comfort in our caring and reassurance that we were there for them and that all would soon be well. Young people often look for comfort from their peers but it is not always the right kind of comfort. As parents we must be aware of our children’s hurts no matter what age they are, and then be there for them to offer uplifting words of comfort and support.

Spouses must be a source of comfort to one another in their times of suffering and sorrow. Many spouses and even children have only friends that they can turn to for comfort and there are not many true friends.

As believers we have the responsibility and privilege to comfort others by sharing the comfort that God has given us. We need comfort from others, but God who is the God of all Comfort gives us a comfort that is beyond any comfort anyone else can give.  The Comfort that God gives is sufficient for every situation and need in our life.

LEARNING:

Our memory verse for this week is found in John 4:35.

Do not say there are still four months and then comes the harvest. Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look at the fields, for they are already white for harvest.

PRAYER:

I look to You today as I do every day for the comfort that only You can give to get me through the tough times in my life and the hurtful things I may encounter today. Give me a new spirit of comfort so that I can comfort those that I meet today that need reassurance and direction in their lives. Bless my family and draw us closer to You each day that we live.