He Comes Beside Us And Comforts Us

December 27

"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 tribulation,
that we may be able to comfort those
who are in any trouble, with the comfort
with which we ourselves are comforted by God."
2 Corinthians 1:3-4

We are not alone in our trials and tribulations, for it is there that we experience God in depths that can only be experienced through suffering. And the depths of comfort we receive from our God in those times equip us to comfort others with later.

This makes Christianity stand out from all other religions. Our God is real, he cares, and he demonstrates his care for us in very personal ways. If a believer walks through a time of suffering, the comfort of the Spirit of God will be very real to him, very obvious, very experiential. It's not book knowledge, it's a living relationship with the Creator who truly, personally loves us.

So if he loves us, why does he let us suffer?

Because suffering matures us and shows us what really matters. It separates in our minds what is important and what is less so, what is priority and what is less so. It turns our eyes upon Jesus.

As in the "Footprints In The Sands" picture, we do not go through it alone. His footprints are always beside ours. And sometimes ...he carries us."

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