Everybody's Going Through Something

Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort; Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God. 2 Corinthians 1:3-4

We honestly have no idea what other people are going through. We see the outside, while only God can see the inside. A put-together exterior can convince us that there's no messy backside or backstory that's currently causing heartache and pain.

The woman who's smiling in all the pictures may be the same one who's waiting for a phone call about a loved one's health. She needs comfort whether we know the situation or not.

The woman who's running a company may be crumbling under the pressure of the seriousness of holding everyone's future in her hands. She needs comfort that she's making wise choices.

The woman who's bustling around the sanctuary greeting everyone on a Sunday morning may be the woman who's lonely the rest of the week. She needs comfort that she's not alone and seen as vitally important to the church family.

The woman who's amazing at planning and organizing and gets asked to do all the things may just need a day to herself to decompress and refresh herself in the Lord. She needs comfort to know that perfectly ok.

The woman who's still getting up every morning, showing up every day, and being everything she can be for everyone may be the woman who is doubting her own abilities ... and sometimes her sanity. She needs comfort that God sees her efforts and loves her endlessly for her faithfulness and obedience.

We can each tell countless stories of times we have been comforted by God in the most terrible times. It's now our privilege, honor, and responsibility to share that comfort with others. It's like passing along that lovely cookie plate we were gifted - it was piled high with goodies for us, and now we can bless someone else by filling it with the comfort they so desperately need now, too.

If we'll open our eyes to the actual world around us, not just the pretty pictures that show the best parts, we'll see a bounty of opportunities every day to lift each other up. We're getting enough of the negative from elsewhere - be the comfort that God has used to comfort you. You may be the only one who steps up to help, so listen to the Holy Spirit on your heart and go where He leads.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Holland Creme - That Amazing White Stuff In Donuts

Image
I remember going to the grocery store every Saturday morning when I was growing up, and my favorite place in the entire store was the donut case. All the glazed, powdered and filled baked goods drew me like a magnet. My favorites, far and away, were the ones filled with that beautiful white, fluffy creme. At the time I didn't know it was called Holland Creme - I just knew it was the most amazing concoction ever. Ever. Here is my version of this sweet treat. You can make your own fried donuts and fill them, or like I did here, you can cut a crevice into store-bought donuts with a knife and fill them with creme in a piping bag. Either way, you're going to love it. Ingredients: 1 cup sugar 1/2 cup water 1 cup vegetable oil 1 cup shortening 1 cup butter 1 Tbsp vanilla 7 cups powdered sugar 1. Make a simple syrup by combining sugar and water in a sauce pan over medium heat until boiling, stirring until sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat and allow to cool complet...
Read more

Recovering An Old Card Table And Making It Usable Again

Image
This card table recover project has been on my to-do list for months. I've been using it as my workspace in the craft room for quite some time, and it sees a lot of abuse. Here it is now, with a neutral cover on it so I can take better pictures for my tutorials. There were dents and dings in the old blue covering from metal tools. And yes, I've used my embossing heat tool on it several times, leaving pretty good scars. The padding underneath the blue cover also made it difficult to keep paper crafts flat when adhering them together, so it was time for something new. That's where a simple vinyl tablecloth comes in handy. The process to recover the table is pretty simple, but I learned a couple of lessons the hard way. I share them with you now. First, don't do this on any surface but a carpet. I tried it on the deck int he sunshine to get better pictures, but all it did was tear up the cover. Second, get a second pair of hands to help you kee...
Read more

Crafts For Teen Girls To Make

Image
In our teen girls Bible study, we're studying our way through the Proverbs 31 woman and it's been such a blessing to me, as I hope it's been to them. Every month we spend an afternoon or an evening together studying Scripture, making something amazing in the kitchen and creating something that corresponds to the verse we're in. Choosing the crafts each time can be a challenge for several reasons. It needs to be something they can completely finish (or do most of) because once they leave they're probably not going to work on it themselves - that's just the nature of teenagers. Remember? It also needs to be a project that keeps they're attention, is age-appropriate and is cool enough that they'll want to keep it or give it to someone special. But hey, no pressure on the Bible study leader, right? Here are just a few of the projects we've done together in the year we've been meeting. * This month's craft will be the adorable cross stit...
Read more