How God Comforts Us
God has a way of comforting us in all of our tribulations.(II Corinthians 1:3,4) It is a well designed plan that is effective for every person who needs comfort. However, each person must be willing to accept the comfort that God gives, which may be different from the comfort they desire. Let me explain.
We should praise God, because He is the "Father of mercies and God of all comfort." That is much more than a title. It is a reality. God made us, so He knows just what we need in every situation. He has mercy to apply to each situation, so we refer to mercy in the plural, mercies. God's mercies are new every morning. He is there to punish us less than we deserve when we bring suffering on ourselves, and He knows just how to bind up our wounds. Also, His comfort is "all comfort." That means that God has just the right comfort for every pain and heartache of life, because He has all kinds of comfort. God is never limited in His comfort. However, some people do not receive it, because they do not trust the Lord, and they do not ask Him for it. If a person tries to handle their pain by themselves, God lets them. They have that choice.
The other facet of God's comfort is that once He comforts us, we can comfort others like we have been comforted by God. This is more than an option. It is God's plan for comforting people. Once we receive His comfort, it is up to us to be His representatives to bring comfort to others around us. This is because some people need another human being to comfort them. They need a human voice or touch at the right moment. That becomes our responsibility to those around us. We tell them how God met our need, what we did to receive His comfort, and how they can do the same thing. Nothing could be more practical than that, could it? The problem is that some people will still not trust the Lord, even after we explain all of this to them. They are set on getting their own way. I am afraid to tell you, but that is not how God works in anything. He is Lord, so we submit to Him and receive the best comfort available, or we go on our own. I pray that all of us will know the comfort of God and share it with others, so all are comforted by God's mercy and grace.
Tomorrow, I intend to read II Corinthians 2-4.
We should praise God, because He is the "Father of mercies and God of all comfort." That is much more than a title. It is a reality. God made us, so He knows just what we need in every situation. He has mercy to apply to each situation, so we refer to mercy in the plural, mercies. God's mercies are new every morning. He is there to punish us less than we deserve when we bring suffering on ourselves, and He knows just how to bind up our wounds. Also, His comfort is "all comfort." That means that God has just the right comfort for every pain and heartache of life, because He has all kinds of comfort. God is never limited in His comfort. However, some people do not receive it, because they do not trust the Lord, and they do not ask Him for it. If a person tries to handle their pain by themselves, God lets them. They have that choice.
The other facet of God's comfort is that once He comforts us, we can comfort others like we have been comforted by God. This is more than an option. It is God's plan for comforting people. Once we receive His comfort, it is up to us to be His representatives to bring comfort to others around us. This is because some people need another human being to comfort them. They need a human voice or touch at the right moment. That becomes our responsibility to those around us. We tell them how God met our need, what we did to receive His comfort, and how they can do the same thing. Nothing could be more practical than that, could it? The problem is that some people will still not trust the Lord, even after we explain all of this to them. They are set on getting their own way. I am afraid to tell you, but that is not how God works in anything. He is Lord, so we submit to Him and receive the best comfort available, or we go on our own. I pray that all of us will know the comfort of God and share it with others, so all are comforted by God's mercy and grace.
Tomorrow, I intend to read II Corinthians 2-4.