Daily Journal: 23 July

How Can God

Comfort Me?

When we are distressed it’s sometimes hard to be comforted. We may feel like nobody understands us. And it's true, nobody really knows our internal struggles and laments. It can make us feel alone.

But if we know GOD, we know God knows, and He cares. The more time we spend in His presence, reading His Word, speaking with Him, stopping to listen to Him, He will speak to our heart, and we will know we are never alone, just like He says.

Psalm 139:9-10 (NLT)

If I ride the wings of the morning, if I dwell by the farthest oceans, even there your hand will guide me, and your strength will support me.

God says He will comfort us. But how?

We need to understand His foundation before we can understand His comfort.

We feel entitled very easily, thinking God owes us consideration when we come to Him. He doesn't owe us anything. He's already paid the greatest price for our eternal salvation. Life on earth is by grace. It is because of grace that He considers us at all.

It is in humility we can draw near to Him and hear from Him and be comforted by His presence.

Step One: draw near to Him

James 4:8 (NASB)

Come close to God and He will come close to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded.

This verse may sound abrasive, but lets recognise that, yes, we are sinners. Acknowledge that we do have a tendency to be double-minded, seeking after what we want but then knowing we need Him when things go dark.

When we draw near to God, we need to draw near with a contrite, thankful heart of surrender. We can bring our doubts and misgivings, our resentments and frustrations, but we must be prepared to lay them down. If we don't, God can’t draw near to us because they act like a barrier. That barrier says, 'I have a right to hold on to these'. We don't. Jesus paid for them with His own body, and His blood.

Philippians 4 teaches us how we can let go

Philippians 4:6-9 (GWT)

Never worry about anything. But in every situation let God know what you need in prayers and requests while giving thanks. Then God’s peace, which goes beyond anything we can imagine, will guard your thoughts and emotions through Christ Jesus. Finally, brothers and sisters, keep your thoughts on whatever is right or deserves praise: things that are true, honourable, fair, pure, acceptable, or commendable. Practice what you’ve learned and received from me, what you heard and saw me do. Then the God who gives this peace will be with you.

Jesus is compassionate and full of mercy. He came to earth and experienced all that we experience yet, He overcame every struggle. He offers us His solace.

Step Two: lay your weights down

Jesus is our foundation, wanting to carry the weight of our burdens.

Matthew 7:24-27 is the parable of the wise and foolish builders. The foolish builder built his house (his life) on sand, and had nothing to stabilise it or ultimately save it. The wise builder built his house on rock (symbolising Jesus as the rock), drilling down into the rock so it was stable and secure in any storm.

The strength of a buildings foundations are central to its stability, carrying its entire weight. Jesus is our firm foundation.

If we trust Jesus as our foundation, we trust Him to carry the entire weight of our burdens.

Psalm 23:4 (CEV)

I may walk through valleys as dark as death, but I won't be afraid. You are with me, and your shepherd's rod makes me feel safe.

CEV Footnotes: shepherd's rod: The Hebrew text mentions two objects carried by the shepherd: a club to defend against wild animals and a long pole to guide and control the sheep.

Consider how the Shepherd protects you, directs you, and sometimes carries you. Is this comforting to you?

Step Three: build faith

John 14:23 (NIV)

Jesus replied, “Anyone who loves me will obey my teaching. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them.

We are in a personal relationship with the God who made the heavens and the earth! Imagine the fullness of God coming to make His home with us. The Word of God was given to us so we would know the Way to Him. Building our faith on Scripture, assures us of His constant presence and His infinite power, no matter how we feel.

Consider the comfort of knowing the fullness of God is inside you, alongside you, knowing you in this moment, throughout this day, in every situation you face.

Romans 15:4b (NCV)

The Scriptures give us patience and encouragement so that we can have hope.

The promises and the stories of lives passed down in the bible bring us hope through our own life challenges and sufferings. Reading those stories helps us to see God's desire and ability to fight for us, to stand by us, to act on our behalf. We see that His nature in those stories is not just true for the centuries told in the bible, but for us right now.

Step Four: believe in what you first confessed

The Holy Spirit is the third person of the trinity. His function is our seal.

Ephesians 1:13b (GNT)

You believed in Christ, and God put his stamp of ownership on you by giving you the Holy Spirit he had promised.

John 14 describes the Holy Spirit as Advocate, Comforter, Helper and Teacher, pointing us to Jesus.

These steps may not seem particularly comforting if you're looking for a hug. But if you're asking, 'how can God comfort me?' Consider these things:

• When I draw near to God and seek Him, I know He is near, He is not far off, He is attentive to me, He knows what He will do for me and He will do what's right for me.

• When I give Jesus Christ the space to be my firm foundation, I know, because of who He is, I can lay my worries down and rest in Him.

• When I find my resting place in His presence, I know I am a sheep that He is the Shepherd for. I'm His problem. My situations belong to Him to make a way for me, to open or close doors, to remove obstacles in my way and make the rough places smooth.

• When I position myself in His will, my faith is assured that I can never go wrong. His promises are true yesterday, today and forever (Hebrews 13:8). All I have to do is agree and say, 'amen' with thanksgiving in my heart (2 Corinthians 1:20).

• When I remember the Holy Spirit has sealed me to Him, and has the role of Advocate, Comforter, Teacher, Helper, I am never alone, I have never been left alone, so I will come into all that is meant for me, as I allow Him to fill me, change me and renew me.

2 Corinthians 1:3-4 (AMP)

Blessed [gratefully praised and adored] be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and the God of all comfort, who comforts and encourages us in every trouble so that we will be able to comfort and encourage those who are in any kind of trouble, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.

Do you feel sometimes you're hurting too much and God doesn't see you?

I pray God Himself will give us the ability to receive His comfort, to reflect on His Word and receive the truth that will set us free, to seek His healing and direction, so that we ourselves can then comfort and encourage others.