Life is hard. Really hard sometimes. But we can rest in the assurance that
God never leaves us. His hope is a beacon of comfort.
In 2 Corinthians 1:3, it describes God as "the father of compassion and the God of all comfort."
He is the God of all comfort. In times of trouble, we need someone to stand beside us to give us strength, helping us and giving us encouragement. God fulfills this role. Whether we're facing sickness and disease or a national tragedy, like the Oklahoma tornado destruction, God comes to comfort us. He sends the Holy Spirit to help us in times of trouble.
The apostle Paul had a life filled with troubles. He describes some of his sufferings in 2 Corinthians 11:23-28: stripes . . . prisons . . . beaten . . . stoned . . . shipwrecked . . . perils of waters . . . robbers . . . in perils of my own countrymen, in perils of the Gentiles, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren; in weariness and toil, in sleeplessness often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness.
Yet, Paul learned that no suffering, however severe, could separate him from the comfort and compassion of the heavenly father. God was not distant from Paul in his trials. He was right there, identifying with the apostle, and comforting Paul.
God will comfort us, too. He may allow troubles in our lives for a season, but we shouldn't think that God has forsaken us or stopped loving us. We should remember that the same kind of troubles happened to God's faithful servants, like Paul.
God allows trials in our lives so that Jesus might come near and, as we look to Him in faith, give us the grace to overcome and bring us to victory.
In 2 Corinthians 1:3, it describes God as "the father of compassion and the God of all comfort."
He is the God of all comfort. In times of trouble, we need someone to stand beside us to give us strength, helping us and giving us encouragement. God fulfills this role. Whether we're facing sickness and disease or a national tragedy, like the Oklahoma tornado destruction, God comes to comfort us. He sends the Holy Spirit to help us in times of trouble.
The apostle Paul had a life filled with troubles. He describes some of his sufferings in 2 Corinthians 11:23-28: stripes . . . prisons . . . beaten . . . stoned . . . shipwrecked . . . perils of waters . . . robbers . . . in perils of my own countrymen, in perils of the Gentiles, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren; in weariness and toil, in sleeplessness often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness.
Yet, Paul learned that no suffering, however severe, could separate him from the comfort and compassion of the heavenly father. God was not distant from Paul in his trials. He was right there, identifying with the apostle, and comforting Paul.
God will comfort us, too. He may allow troubles in our lives for a season, but we shouldn't think that God has forsaken us or stopped loving us. We should remember that the same kind of troubles happened to God's faithful servants, like Paul.
God allows trials in our lives so that Jesus might come near and, as we look to Him in faith, give us the grace to overcome and bring us to victory.
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