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Do you need comforting?



Introduction


Do you ever need to be comforted?


If you had asked me that question some years ago I would have responded with pride that my need to be comforted was seldom and far in between. In my type A arrogance I saw myself as stronger than most, more in charge and in control. “If it is to be, it’s up to me,” could have easily been my motto. So, needing consistent comforting in my life…nah! I’m one of the stronger ones. Phew, I’m glad that guy is long gone. I told him to leave and he is not welcomed back.


Ask me today…do I need to be comforted in my life? With a deep exhale, my mind answers with an unhesitatingly resigned admission; “Yes…yes I do need to be comforted…regularly! I’ll take as much as I can get.” Why the change? Got a couple hours? Maybe I am more humble now, maybe my understanding of my Christ is more mature. Maybe I just need Him more. All the above reasons and many more, I can assure you.


Mr. Noah Webster tells us that to provide comfort to another is provide strength, consolation and encouragement to that person. Can you name a time in your life when you would not want more of any of these three in your day or all of them?


I’ve read this morning the headlines of today. They cause me to run, looking for comfort. I’m a parent...my heart cries out for comfort when thinking of my children in this increasingly upside-down world they are inheriting. I strive to be the priest of this home, for Cindy and the kids…my mind and heart need comfort in great amounts in carrying out this Holy calling. I’m almost seventy years old, what about this, what about that?…I crave comfort. And then there are the seemingly relentless waves of life that crash into my being that come with just living daily behind enemy lines. I need a comforter.


But, where to go…to get this needed comfort? I don’t see bottles of comfort being sold on Amazon with free shipping. If it is there, it is a fake comfort, for sure. But I do know a place open 24/7/365 where real and true comfort is made available in any quantity needed and for free. So, if I am lacking in comfort, then it is I who is the problem. Why don’t I go there more often? Got a couple more hours?


“God is our merciful Father and the source of all comfort. He comforts us in all our troubles…” 2 Cor. 1:3-4 NLT

There it is. Never should I lack the caressing and soothing feel of lying in His green pastures while hearing the sound of refreshing cool water nearby. He restores my soul.


I wrote this letter to my father when I know he was needing large quantities of comfort in his life. And I am no less needy today for it now. Let us give thanks for those things in our lives that compel us to run to the source of all comfort, Father Himself.



 

This letter was written on December 28, 2018.


I Need A Comforter



All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is our merciful Father and the source of all comfort. 2 Corinthians 1:3



Hi Dad,


What does it mean to provide “comfort?” Noah Webster says it means to provide strength, consolation and encouragement.


I don’t know how you feel Pops, but any amount of those three are very welcome. A lot or little, I feel grateful they are being offered to me. The fact that Father provides them to me gives me evidence they are necessary ingredients for the believer as we live here on earth behind enemy lines.


Jesus walked this physical earth and experienced every possible human emotion. He confronted our enemy head on and saw first-hand the devastation Satan and sin had wrought. There is nothing that we have or will ever experience that Jesus has not walked through personally. That is why He can be called the Great Comforter. He truly understands. The best comforter is always the one who has already passed through the particular valley that you find yourself in. There is no human valley He has not tread through. He has emerged victoriously from everyone. That is why Paul can make his boast, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” Philippians 4:12 NKJV. Paul, in Christ, can handle anything. Not because he is personally strong but that he is filled with the supernatural strength from one who has “been there, done that” before him.



The comfort that Father God offers us is just that, supernatural. He gives the peace that “surpasses all understanding.” It is a comfort that is of heavenly origin not like our weak human sentiment. It is a comfort that is perfect for every human experience we will have while we live in this decaying and corrupted world.


I would surmise that there are many believing Christ followers that would say that they really don’t experience the comfort from Father that I am speaking about. Why is this? There isn’t enough room here to share all my thoughts on the answer to that question. But this I do know, “Come near to God and he will come near to you.” James 4:8 NIV. Whenever we are in the presence of Jesus or Father, the presence of their peace and joy is abundant and penetrating, no matter what our current station is. And whenever we experience their joy and peace, we find strength, consolation and encouragement; comfort.


“Come near to God and he will come near to you.” James 4:8 NIV

Pops, both of us have a lot going on in our lives. You are in the valley of health challenges and questions. I am in the fog of life’s busyness, trying to make decisions about the future, trying to launch my children into life with a maturity in Christ that will carry them. Dad, let’s seek out the comfort of Father to carry us through all this. He will give us the perfect amount of whatever we need for the moment, let’s draw close to Him. He will not fail us!


Love you Pops




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clintamiller
Jan 26, 2023

This is so rich and so good! Lord - help me to find my comfort in you and to be humbly real about my need for your comfort, your strength and your refreshing! Apart from you I truly have nothing!!

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