Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God. 2 Corinthians 1:4
God used so many people to comfort me – close friends, family, acquaintances, neighbors, high school friends. God comforted me so that I can comfort others. I hope to. Comfort others.
My friend is hurting. Her mother passed away. Her mother was her best friend. My friend is an only child. Mother and daughter were as close as seems possible. I wrote her a note of sympathy. In that note, I called her relationship a blessing and a curse. A blessing because of the many wonderful years of memories. A curse because it makes the grief and pain of that loss so much greater.
I used that rhetorical phrase because I have experienced both the blessing and the curse.
The blessing of being so close to my parents, both my mother and my father – the blessing of living close to them, our children back and forth between our homes, often worshipping, working, and vacationing together. The blessing of long life – many years to love and enjoy them – many years of experiencing their love for me.
The curse doesn’t come until the end of the long, blessed life. The curse comes when the suffering begins, and you suffer with the parent, for the parent. The curse comes when he/she passes away and the pain and grief seem unbearable.
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Everyone doesn’t know the curse. I once spoke with a woman whose father had passed away. She said she hadn’t shed a tear! I sat, dumbfounded, listening to her. I didn’t judge her. I was happy for her that she hadn’t suffered grief – that she hadn’t suffered the curse, but sad for her that she hadn’t experienced the blessing!
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The great hope for the believer is that the curse eventually dies. Because God IS the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, the curse dies, but the blessing remains. And the blessing grows and develops, like a beautiful summer flower, with the expectation and hope of eternal life.
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The blessing of eternal life – forever to love and enjoy them – forever of experiencing their love for me.
My friend, I write this for you, today. May you find comfort in the arms of the Father of compassion.
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