What is Comfort?

What does comfort mean to you? Sometimes we use the term to define an ideal of some sort. For example, when someone asks how much money is enough and we answer, “enough to be comfortable.” 

Where do you seek comfort when you face tragedy or disappointment? There are many examples throughout the Bible of men and women who have been able to find comfort in the midst of pain and tribulation. These stories can be helpful for us. 

Psalm 13 is probably one of the darker psalms written by King David. It begins, “How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me? How long must I take counsel in my soul and have sorrow in my heart all the day?” I admit that I have cried these words in my life, I think we all have. David was at a point where he felt God was absent. 

Have you reached the point where you expect comfort to mean God solving your problems rather than walking with you through them? When tragedy befalls you and you don’t see God intervening you wonder where He is. You are not alone. We need to get back to the meaning of comfort in these moments. 

The word comfort is from the Latin and combines com, which means together and fortis, which means strength. So, comfort was originally together strength. This evolved into the word confortarewhich came to mean, “strengthen much.” Then we arrive at the 17thcentury and the word represents physical ease. And today we hear comfort and immediately think of fluffy blankets and junk food. We went from ‘together-strength’ to ‘pain-barrier.’

God will never leave us or forsake us. With God we can be together-strong.Jesus reminds us that we will face tribulation in John 16:33, and these troubles are nothing new. If you find yourself questioning God, answer this question: how are you looking to experience His company? We must not forget the second part of the verse from John. Jesus ends with the encouragement that we can take heart He has overcome the world. 

That should give us real comfort.

Cleared for Landing

Are you fighting a cold? Have you encountered the flu? Whether it has hit your household this year or in the past, cold and flu season is miserable. Equally miserable is worrying about it. You take every precaution—getting a flu shot, constantly washing your hands, upping your vitamins—but ultimately, we have little control over what we catch. If you’re like me, you don’t put yourself in danger, but you also don’t let a preoccupation with sickness cloud your thoughts. However, it is not always easy.

Anxiety is a real affliction these days, and the frequency with which we hear about it seems to be increasing. Jesus calls us to not be anxious about anything (Matt. 6:25). Paul echoes this sentiment in his letter to the church in Philippi (Philippians 4:6). The arguments are sound but are often easier said than done.

I recently read a great analogy for anxious thoughts. Max Lucado wrote a book titled, Anxious for Nothing. (He also created a five-day devotion and reading plan you can find in the YouVersion Bible app) (bible.com/r/1By). The illustration is that of airplanes. If you can picture your thoughts as airplanes and yourself as the air traffic controller you can, with work, decide which thoughts land and which ones fly away. Our real challenge ends up being how we think about the trials that we face. So much of our life is out of our control. The thing that we can learn to control is how we respond when difficulties arise.

The anxiety in our lives plants seeds of lies and creates well-worn paths in our thinking. If we’re not careful, it influences the way we perceive our struggles. Anxiety wants to master our thinking. We need to remember that anxiety is not the master of our minds. We need to remember that we have the power of the Holy Spirit alive inside us. Romans 8:38-39 says, “For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

When that anxiety threatens to crush you simply call on God, “cast all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.” (1 Pet 5:7) This is how you can deny your struggles the platform and influence over your mind. Cling to Christ and abide in Him. When you do, you bear fruit and you disarm your enemy. Remember that as the air traffic controller YOU decide which thoughts are cleared for landing.

How do you spell ‘Love’?

Think about when you were a kid. What was one of the ways you felt loved by the people that raised you? One common answer is, “They always provided for me.” Most of what we do as parents is trying to provide for our families. We do this because we love them.

I was recently asked to speak at a high school chapel. The theme of the year was ‘Names of God.’ My particular talk was to be on 1 John 4:16 ESV which reads, so we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.God is love. Sounds can sound cliché. However, it is true and one of the ways we know this is that God provides.

When I was in youth group, we sang a song, ‘Jehovah Jireh.’ The lyrics were: Jehovah Jireh, my provider, His grace is sufficient for me. My God shall provide all my needs according to His riches in glory…Jehovah Jireh cares for me. This song by Don Moen is referring to a name given to God in Genesis chapter 22. Here we find the story of Abraham being asked by God to take his son, Isaac, to be sacrificed on the altar. Abraham obeys and just as he is about to plunge the knife into his son, the angel of the Lord stops him. When Abraham looks up, he sees in the bushes a ram. God provided a substitute for Isaac.

I want to go back, however, as this is not the first time God has provided for Abraham. In Genesis 15 one of the most fascinating examples of provision is found. God has promised Abraham that he will possess the entire land that God has shown him. Abraham wants a contract. 

God asks for Abraham to bring five sacrificial animals, cut the animals in half and sets up what is known as a blood path covenant. In this covenant each party would walk through the middle of the slaughtered animals wearing a white robe and splashing the blood up onto their clothes. The whole point is both parties agreeing that if they did not hold up their end of the bargain, that they would be killed just like the animals.

After Abraham sets this up, he would be the one to walk through first as the lesser party. But he doesn’t. God has Abraham fall into a deep sleep and God walks through the path twice. God knew Abraham couldn’t possible hold up his end of the bargain, so God did. God knows that we couldn’t save ourselves. He provided for us in the person of his only Son, Jesus. We deserve to be Isaac on the altar or the slaughtered animals, yet we are in right standing because God provided a savior for us. 

If that’s not love, I don’t know what is.

Best Day Ever

Psalm 18:1-3“I love you, O Lord, my strength. 2 The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.3 I call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised, and I am saved from my enemies.”

I hope that you’re having the best day ever. All your traffic lights are green, your work day is easy, your family is all getting along, and you got to pet that cute dog. I hope you ate delicious food and spent time with the ones you love. When you’re having an awesome day it is easy to praise God. It’s easy to agree with these words from Psalm 18 when it feels like the warmth of the sun is shining on every aspect of your life. When you have a day like this remember it, mark it down, because we know that the other kind of days are going to happen too.

We have those days when all the lights are red, your boss is mad, and the kids won’t stop bickering. David knows how that feels all too well. He continues in verses 4-6, “4 The cords of death encompassed me; the torrents of destruction assailed me; 5 the cords of Sheol entangled me; the snares of death confronted me. 6 In my distress I called upon the Lord; to my God I cried for help. From his temple he heard my voice, and my cry to him reached his ears.”

David, like most of us, had a complex life. He was far from perfect. Even though he was remembered as one of the great heroes of the faith much of the story that we see in the Bible is on his bad days, and he had a LOT of bad days. However, no matter how hard and no matter how far he fell God was always there when David was looking for Him.

I hope you have many good days. Nevertheless, when you do have a bad one, I hope you know that there is a God that loves you and is always there for you. I hope we can thank him for the good days and remember him on the bad ones.