Comfort

2 Corinthians 1:3-4
Acts 3:19-20
Psalm 23:1-4
Romans 15:30-32
2 Timothy 1:13-18

Beloveds, sometimes life hurts.

Sometimes, we find ourselves trudging through a time “that is dry, desolate, and without water.” (Psalm 63:1)

Through the sting of wind-driven sand against our cheeks God invites, “If anyone is thirsty, let [her] come to me and drink. The one who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, will have streams of living water flow from deep within [her].” (John 7:37-38)

Sometimes, we stumble blindly “through the darkest valley.” (Psalm 23:4)

Into our darkness God calls out, “Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the LORD shines over you.” (Isaiah 60:1)

Sometimes, we are soul-sick, “weary from my groaning; with tears I dampen my bed and drench my couch every night. My eyes are swollen from grief[.]” (Psalm 6:6-7)

To the soul fevered and delirious in sin, God gently applies the healing balm of His ministry of reconciliation, “It is not those who are well who need a doctor, but those who are sick. I didn’t come to call the righteous, but sinners.” (Mark 2:17, 2 Corinthians 5:18)

When life hurts, our Father invites us to come, be refreshed in the presence of Emmanuel, God with us. (Matthew 1:23)

“Come to Me, all of you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest,” He encourages us. (Matthew 11:28, emphasis mine)

“Therefore repent and turn [to God], so that your sins may be wiped out, and that seasons of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord[,]” urges Peter, an apostle and founder of the early Church. (Acts 3:19-20, emphasis mine)

And sometimes, we can. 
We can run, crawl, or claw our way through the brambles of deception or suffering to an awareness of His presence and let His abundant life renew our spirits. (John 10:10)

But sometimes, we can’t.
Though He has promised never to leave or forsake us, to be with us always, sometimes, we can’t see past the darkness closing in on us, hear past the condemnation echoing in our minds, or believe in hope beyond the despair stealing our breath. 
(Deuteronomy 31:6, Matthew 28:19-20)

When the lifeblood of faith has so completely drained from our fingers that we cannot grasp His refreshment for ourselves, He holds us steadfastly and sends tangible refreshing through what the Book of Common Prayer calls “the communion of saints”.

“Help us, we pray, in the midst of things we cannot understand,
to believe and trust in the communion of saints,
 the forgiveness of sins, and the resurrection to life everlasting.” 
(Book of Common Prayer, Burial of the Dead, Rite One)

This idea of communal encouragement among the saints bringing God’s refreshment to suffering believers is seen throughout Scripture. For example, in the gospel of Mark, four faithfully persistent men literally carry their paralyzed friend into Jesus’ healing presence. (Mark 2:1-12)

Additionally, the epistles, letters written by early Church leaders to followers of Jesus, contain numerous examples of believers refreshing one another in God.

For example, in Paul’s letter to Christ-followers in Rome, he entreats them “to strive together with me in prayers and to God on my behalf [. . .] that, by God’s will, I may come to you with joy and be refreshed together with you.” (Romans 15:30-32)

In his letter to the church in Thessalonica, Paul relates how his friend and fellow laborer for the gospel, Timothy, ministered to him, “But now Timothy has come to us from you and brought us good news about your faith and love [. . .] Therefore, brothers and sisters, in all our distress and affliction, we are encouraged about you through your faith. For now we live, if you stand firm in the Lord.” (1 Thessalonians 3:6-10)

In a letter to this same Timothy, Paul recounts how, after being abandoned by believers in Asia, he received encouragement from Onesiphorus, who sought Paul out and refreshed him, unashamed of Paul’s chains for the sake of the gospel. (2 Timothy 1:13-18)

Answering God’s call to serve as a conduit of tangible refreshment can even help spread the good news of the Gospel to all nations (Mark 16:14-20), and guide us as we welcome and train up those who are new or weak in the faith. (Romans 13:11-14:12)

In my own faith journey, 2 Corinthians 1:3-4 has been particularly meaningful:
“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort. He comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any kind of affliction, through the comfort we ourselves receive from God.” 

Several years ago, I was in that dry and desolate, dark and soul-sick place where I couldn’t perceive God’s presence. At the time, a sister-in-Christ shared, with courage-soaked vulnerability, about her own heartbreaking struggle. When I didn’t feel able to hear His voice, God spoke to me through her words and broke the power of a lie that had me in a strangle-hold of despair. 

More recently, another friend was caught up in a similar struggle. I felt God nudge me to reach out to her, to share His words of encouragement, refreshment, and comfort when she couldn’t hear for herself. 

Sisters, by actively engaging in the communion of saints, we can share God’s invitation, “Come! Be refreshed in My presence!”