2 CORINTHIANS 1:3-5 – “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. For as we share abundantly in Christ’s sufferings, so through Christ we share abundantly in comfort too.”
THEME OF THE DAY: GIVERS NOT HOARDERS. The next time we take a walk in our neighborhoods or drive through them to go to church, run errands, or head out to an appointment, glance at all the houses. Then ask this question – “I wonder how many households are going through some difficult and hard times in life right now and need comfort?” The answer should quickly come to our minds – all of them.
It has been said, “Life is nothing but trials. We are either in a trial, coming out of a trial, or preparing for a trial.” That, my friends, is true, and not just for some of our neighbors, but all of them and that includes us. When the Old Testament suffering saint Job said, “Man who is born of a woman is few of days and full of trouble. He comes out like a flower and withers; he flees like a shadow and continues not” (Job 14:1-2), he spoke the truth for the entire human race. That is what sin did and does, yet there is hope. We have the God of all comfort who meets us in all our affliction to comfort us. We rejoice in His comfort, but we don’t rest in His comfort.
God doesn’t give us the blessings of His grace and comfort for us to simply rest and be comforted. Like all of His blessings in life, we are not to be hoarders but givers. We get to give. The whole of the Christian life is about self-sacrifice for others, self-denial for others, not about being self-serving and ignoring others. And it applies when God comforts us in times of sorrow, trial, and suffering.
In today’s scripture, the Apostle Paul exhorts us to remember this principle; God comforts us so we will comfort others, and not with words of flattery, but by being instruments of His comfort to suffering people. This includes words of encouragement, acts of service, weeping with those who weep, and being available to be a listening ear and shoulder the burdens of life. Basically, we model the compassionate, giving, and gentle heart and life of Jesus.
The questions then become these for us – are we hoarders of God’s grace and comfort for ourselves? Or are we channels of God’s grace and comfort to others? And to be such channels begins by following the Apostle Paul’s instructions in the second chapter of his letter to the Philippians in attitude and mindset – “Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 2:3-5).
Remember, we are givers, not hoarders.
PRAYER: Lord, help me to see that what You give me, I am to give to others.
REFLECTION: God made us to be givers of His grace and comfort, not hoarders of His grace and comfort.