Sharing the Comfort You've Received
Daily Scripture
2 Corinthians 1:3-4
3 May the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ be blessed! He is the compassionate Father and God of all comfort. 4 He’s the one who comforts us in all our trouble so that we can comfort other people who are in every kind of trouble. We offer the same comfort that we ourselves received from God.
Daily Reflection & Prayer
One of the beautiful promises of the Christian life is that God doesn’t waste our pain. Paul reminds us that the God who meets us with mercy also meets us with comfort—not so we can keep that comfort to ourselves, but so we can share it with others who are hurting. The comfort we receive from God is meant to flow through us, becoming a source of hope and encouragement along the way.
The difficult seasons you’ve walked through may become the very places where God equips you to encourage a grieving friend, listen to someone who feels alone, or offer hope to someone who wonders if things will ever get better. Today, remember that whatever you are carrying, God is present with you. And as you receive God’s comfort today, ask how you might become an instrument of that same comfort for someone else. Often, the greatest acts of ministry begin with simply noticing another person’s burden and reminding them they do not have to carry it alone.
- Where do I most need to receive God’s comfort today?
- How has God used a past hardship to help me understand or encourage someone else?
- Who in my life may be quietly carrying a burden that needs compassion today? What is one simple way I can share God’s comfort through my words, presence, or actions today?
Prayer
Merciful and comforting God, thank you for meeting me in every season with your presence and your comfort. When I feel weary or overwhelmed, remind me that I am never alone. Fill my heart with the peace only you can give and help me share the comfort I have received with someone who needs hope today. Make me an instrument of your compassion and encouragement. Amen.
GPS Insights
Darren Lippe
As we consider today’s passage, I would submit that the life of Brother Lawrence, a French monk from the 1600’s, offers us a good example of living into Paul’s exhortation. Let’s take a look:
Brother Lawrence’s life wasn’t an easy one. He grew up in poverty in France. He was wounded as a soldier during the Thirty Years War & would suffer physical limitations for the rest of his life.
Aside: Brother Lawrence developed quite the reputation as a cook. His potatoes were so famous, he became known as the “French Friar.”
Brother Lawrence was a footman for a prominent family when he became a believer. His conversion was rather simple: It was midwinter. He saw a dry/leafless tree. He reflected on the changes & renewal that would occur in the coming spring. That tree would become full of leaves & vibrant with new life all because of the power of God.
As he enters the brotherhood, our friend is brooding over his past life & his past mistakes. He has an epiphany one evening, where he confesses his crimes against his King. Astonishingly the King doesn’t chastise him, but embraces him with love & treats Lawrence like he is His favorite son.
Aside: Brother Lawrence considered joining a Gregorian monastery; but he could never get the chants.
Brother Lawrence leaned into this relationship & contended that God delights in our love, more than our perfection. We could be in communion with God as much as we like, but we make the choice to hinder God & stop Him from penetrating our soul with a vibrant faith.
Thus, Brother Lawrence strove to invite God into his daily routines & chores. Every task became an act of worship. Washing dishes became a time of thanksgiving for the food he ate, mopping the floor became a time of washing away his own transgressions, folding laundry let him pray for those who would wear those clothes. In short, the glory was not in the task, but for Whom the task could glorify.
People began to come to the Abby to chat with Brother Lawrence about God. These conversations would be documented in a small book, “The Practice of the Presence of God.” Like Paul’s challenge today, Brother Lawrence, who felt so comfortable in God’s presence, began to comfort others with the promise of God’s love.
Aside: Allegedly, some of his fellow monks grew tired of some of Lawrence’s sayings, like when he served bacon for breakfast he’d always intone, “Out of the frying pan & into the friar.”
So, what might some conversations with a monk mean for us 400 years later? What if we genuinely invited God to be our constant companion, joining in our celebrations, wiping away our tears, & laughing at our funny thoughts? Maybe, just maybe, God is the best source of the peace & solace that our world so desperately needs.
Now if you’ll excuse me, I want to check out a virtual, online monastery. This hi-tech abbey was started by a former computer engineer who is nicknamed the “Chip Monk.”
