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"Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted."
(Matthew 5:4)
Have you ever mourned for another person because he or she refused to listen to the truth? I know some of you reading this devotional today have loved ones that you are praying for and sharing truth with, but they simply refuse to listen to you. That is a hard place to be. It is so difficult because you care so deeply for them. Their rejection and refusal to listen leads you to mourn for them. That is okay. Jesus said that you and I are blessed when we are in a state of mourning.
Years ago, when our daughter, Hannah, was still in school, she felt the burden of mourning for a friend who refused to hear the truth. Hannah loves the Lord and lost people and is a great witness for Christ. She met with this young man who was searching, but he refused to believe the basic teachings of the Bible. He challenged Hannah on the doctrine of eternal punishment in hell, and Hannah reminded him that she did not make this up, but Jesus said it. It did not go very well, and Hannah called me and was upset. She literally wept for this young man and his spiritual blindness. I encouraged her and prayed with her on the phone. And you know what? Just like Jesus promised, He brought comfort out of her mourning.
God is so kind to heal our hurting and mourning hearts when we reach out to Him. He has the power to turn our graves into gardens, as Elevation Worship so powerfully reminds us in their hit song. Isaiah 61:3 states, "To console those who mourn in Zion, to give them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they may be called trees of righteousness."
Some people disagree with Jesus and His teaching on mourning. They argue that no one wants to hear about your troubles and hang-ups; just sweep them under the rug of your life and keep them there. But that is unhealthy thinking. The truth is, you will either deal with your sins and sins committed against you in a healthy, mourning, confessional manner, or you will suppress, hide, and deal with them through destructive measures. Trying to find help and healing in alcohol, drugs, illicit relationships, etc. only leads to more pain and misery.
Consider the opposite of this second Beatitude statement of Jesus: Cursed are those who never mourn, for they stay in their cage of bitterness and hurt and never receive comfort.
How are you dealing with personal hurt or the pain and hurt you see in others? Jesus has the answer. It is most healthy and therapeutic to not keep it inside, but to mourn. Cry out to Jesus and experience the healing and the comfort He promises to bring. |
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