To Comfort & Encourage - Dinner #50

     Our neighbor’s mother passed away, a missionary’s 3-year-old daughter was killed in a car accident, a friend from my childhood suffered a miscarriage, a college friend had two of her grandparents die in one week, a friend from church lost their son-in-law . . . I have seen SO much hurt and loss, this month! What a wonderful thing to know that during each and ever y heartache that we face, “Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows . . .” (Isaiah 53:4) Blessed be the Name of Our Loving Lord!

     Have you gone through trials and hurt in your own life? II Corinthians 1:3-4 “Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort: Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God.”  No matter what you have faced, God was right there to see you through! Did you lean on Him? Did He give you some particular comfort from His Word during those darkest hours? There may be a time in your life when He will later impress it upon your heart to share that comfort with someone else!  Going through a deep hurt, helps you to hurt deeply for others!  In Matthew 18:19-20, Jesus declares, “Again I say unto you, That if two of you shall agree on earth as touching any thing that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in heaven.  For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.”  You, too, have lost a parent.  You, too, have buried a young child in the ground.  You, too, have watched a spouse slowly die of cancer.  And now, by God’s wondrous grace, you have the strength to put your arm around someone else going through the same thing, and to PRAY with them in Jesus’ Precious Name! 

     This modern technological age that we live in is a powerful thing!  Hebrews 3:13 tells us to, “. . .  exhort one another daily, while it is called To day . . .” How simple that is in the year 2012!  We have an opportunity to reach out and encourage others, like never before!   Within SECONDS of the word being out that a loved one has been injured or passed away, prayers can go up, links and photos can be shared, and phone calls can be made.  Within SECONDS!  Of course, like anything in our sinful world, this speed and technology can also be used for evil.  We’ve seen in recent years how people have committed MURDER over one hateful message on the internet! Facebook, emails, blogs . . . They can be used for griping about politics, but they can also be a tool for sharing God’s love with other people! “Statuses” and “updates” can be things violently fought over, or they can be things used to greatly glorify God!  Psalm 133:1 declares, “Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!” God wants His children to have unity! In a world that is rampant with hatred and strife, you can choose, by God’s grace, to be a BLESSING! 

    In Romans chapter 12, Paul tells us that “exhortation”, or “encouragement”,  is actually a spiritual gift from the Lord.  Some people may have a “gift” for encouraging, more than others, but Christ wants EVERY ONE of us to “Bear ye on another’s burdens . . .” (Galatians 6:2) and to “Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others.” (Philippians 2:4) Do you know someone whose heart is hurting? Lift them up in prayer!  Do you know someone who needs a loving word? Reach out to them, today!  I Thessalonians 5:11 “Wherefore comfort yourselves together, and edify one another . . .”  Your love in Christ may heal a sister’s broken spirit! Your compassion and concern may lead some lost soul to Jesus! Hebrews 3:13 “. . .  exhort one another daily, while it is called To day . . .” God has called each of His children to COMFORT & ENCOURAGE!