Devotional: Encourage and Comfort

Praised be God, Father of our Lord Yeshua the Messiah, compassionate Father, God of all encouragement and comfort; who encourages us in all our trials, so that we can encourage others in whatever trials they may be undergoing with the encouragement we ourselves have received from God.
2 Corinthians 1:3-4 (CJB)

The world excels in bringing us to our knees. Unable to stand anymore, we break down. Loved ones die, close friends leave our sides, and our hopes can smash into a million pieces and it can all happen in a blink of an eye. We live in a world of sadness and despair. We can see in the news, nearly every night, that people are hurting. Some hurt to the point where they will hurt others so they can feel just a tiny bit better. People are killing themselves because they see no light. As Christians, it is partly our fault.

From bible.com

Jesus said, "Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted." Being sad is not a bad thing. There is a bit of odd joy in it, you will feel better. God is always there to encourage us, He will build us back up every time we break down. Mighty things can happen when we fall to our knees. We rejoice with each other when God brings us back to standing beside him. Some of us do not go out there, like we should, showing the world a God who encourages, and builds. We are the "blessed who mourn." We are those who receive comfort and encouragement so we should be the ones on the front lines of the drug epidemic showing people a God who does care and can make you feel something amazingly grand inside. We should be the first responders when someone is on the edge, thinking they would be better off if they were dead.

God comforts us so we can comfort a hurt and broken world. It is our time step out of the shadows of our churches and step brazenly into the darkness as beacons. We can take whatever the world throws at us for we have Christ backing our every move.

Heavenly Father, God of all encouragement and comfort, set me ablaze with your light and push me out into the depths of the darkness in our world. Let me be the evidence of what your Grace can do for this hurting world.