All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is our merciful Father and the source of all comfort. He 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.
2 Corinthians 1:3-4 NLT
Comforted to Comfort
When you look at the world, what do you see? Through the eyes of righteousness, it’s an evil world. Remember when Jesus looked at the crowd with compassion in Matthew 9:36? Do you know why? They were helpless. When I see the world, I see pain. Go to town and look around. You will see suffering. Underneath all the anger and harsh talk is frustration and misery. The world is in dire need of comfort.
Here is a mystery; we are Comforted to Comfort. The more we comfort, the more the comfort multiplies. As agents of comfort, we don’t lose our comfort when we comfort others. There’s enough comfort for everyone. Comfort is one of the ways the church can save the lost for Christ. Christ Himself cried out, “Come to me all who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest.”
You cannot give what you don’t have. If you are not comforted, how will you comfort? Comfort is not the absence of troubles. Comfort is the presence of calmness at the battlefront and hope in the middle of the storm. It’s a transcending understanding that allows you to comfort someone while you sail go through your own sufferings.
How do we find comfort in order to comfort?
Access to Comfort
For the more we suffer for Christ, the more God will shower us with his comfort through Christ.
2 Corinthians 1:5 NLT
Whenever we go through afflictions as God’s children, our first instinct is to question God. “God, why me?”. “God, I’ve been faithful to you”. We make it feel like God has been such a huge letdown. He has disappointed the one person who has been faithful to Him for so long; you. How funny! He is God all by Himself and does not need to explain everything we have to suffer. Simply trust in His Fatherhood.
What we do not realise in all our circumstances is this; the more we suffer the more He showers us with blessings of comfort. Do you see how grace increases as sin increases? Do you see how blessings increase when praise increases? This is the mystery. This is called the Law of Exponential Increase. As suffering increases, so does the shower of Comfort increase. It’s not about what you go through; it’s about your capacity to endure. With this understanding, it means we are capable of enduring anything the Lord makes us go through.
God has not disappointed you amid your great suffering. He has not forsaken you. He has actually made a great provision. Instead of being offended, be reminded. He hasn’t deserted you. He is not far away from you. He hasn’t left you to suffer. If He wasn’t with you, do you think you could have gone through what you went through? Eventually, you realize He never failed you. Psalm 34:18 says he is rather closer to the brokenhearted. Instead of questioning Him as you suffer, why don’t you open up your heart to receive His comfort?
Hope Over Anxiety
And when I was burdened with worries, you comforted me and made me feel secure.
Psalms 94:19 CEV
Yes, this world is unfair and “unfair” is an understatement. Yes the wicked succeed, the righteous suffer, the rich steal from the poor, and evil still persists. Yes, everything looks chaotic. Oh yes, your head aches whenever you think in that direction. You don’t even know what to do with your life anymore? You’re not alone. What you have lost is hope. Once you receive God’s comfort, your threshold to endure anything that comes your way increases.
Realize the importance of hope. There’s a reason why hope made it to the finals (hope, faith and love in 1 Corinthians 13:13). Whenever there’s invisible burdens and anxieties, it’s simply the absence of hope. If there’s no hope that your hard work will pay off, why the need for hard work, etc? As aforementioned, the unrealized prescription to this dilemma is COMFORT. The NLT version of the verse says, “When doubts filled my mind, your comfort gave me renewed hope and cheer.” Let God comfort you. Let Him teach you that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared to the glory which shall be revealed in us.
You really need Comfort so go to God, the source of all comfort, your Allos Parakletos ❣️Pray a simple sincere prayer; Holy Spirit, comfort my soul.
Holy Spirit, comfort my soul🙏. Amenn