The Comfort He Brings

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 affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. ~2 Cor. 1:3-4

We are facing a season of hardship, conflict, and affliction. We can become so weary of bad news that we cry out to God, wondering why. My children are mourning the losses of senior year activities, college friends, independent living, and freedom. My younger children are unsettled, acting out, short-tempered, and quick to cry. Truthfully, I am lonely, missing community, and longing for my husband to be able to be back at home. 

My ability to comfort another directly links to the comfort I have received from Him. 

We comfort because He has carried us through adversity, not because we have just heard about the hardship or difficulty. No, we console because God has faithfully walked us through, and we can point to Him for the ones caught in the struggle. We become His ambassadors, His hands and feet to offer comfort, rest, help, and truth to the ones wracked by hardship that feels overwhelming and never-ending.

So I wonder, what do I know of this comfort? I love what Spurgeon said about the beginning of this verse - by blessing God, we "destroy distress by bringing God upon the scene."

Comfort blossoms out of the truth of who God is. He is sovereign, constant, unchanging, and faithful. His sovereignty declares that He hasn't lost control of one single thing that seems to be spiraling out of control. His constancy promises His presence right with me in the struggle. His unchanging nature means that comfort will be given in an ongoing, meaningful way because He is the Father of all mercies. And He is faithful to supply all the support needed. 

He is the Source of all I need in my time of need.

His comfort is unlike any other. Comfort comes from the Greek word parakaleo, meaning to call for, exhort, encourage, strengthen, and console. It is the steady truth of the Scripture coming alive on the page as I seek Him. His words actively slice through my layers of fear, panic, numbness, or pain. 

It is the faithful allegiance, service, and prayers of the Tychicus, Titus, and Epaphras friends in life - the warriors who will stand in the gap and bring encouragement on the dark days. 

It is the miraculous moment when something shifts that seemed immovable, and you instantly know the hand of God was involved.

But most importantly, His comfort comes through the Comforter, the great Paraclete. The Holy Spirit is indwelling you and me as believers. Ephesians 1:13-14 declares this truth that “when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit.” Jesus declared that the best thing for us would be the Comforter or Helper who would come. He guides us into truth, causes us to abound in hope, grants us unity, regenerates, and renews us.

But if I resist or resent my struggle, how can I comfort another?

If I redefine it so that I don't have to walk through the battle, or if I refuse the difficult road God calls me to, there is no ground for comforting another. When I run to quick fixes or hide in holes of denial, I declare that He is not my comforter. And I am empty when faced with another who desperately needs to hear the truth of Who He is.

The spread of the Gospel is rapid and fierce when we, having walked through the fires, can testify to not being burned. 

Hope is offered to the world when we can point to the waters that seemed to overwhelm us and then share the peace of God, which restrained the despair so that we did not drown. The world is desperate for comfort. The body of believers is desperate for comfort. Let us walk as comforters because we know and have been comforted by Him.