The God of all comfort
He drew me up from the desolate pit,
Out of the miry bog. Psalm 40:2
Read 2 Corinthians 1:3–11
Honestly, I may not really know what Paul is really talking about. I’m sure the consolation he has found is for the suffering he’s endured for his faith in Christ. That included a chapter of imprisonments, lashings, stoning, near-drowning and more.[1] I may not know that. I may never have been persecuted as a Christian. However, I may have endured abuse of some kind in my life, grave or light, long ago, or today, so I will turn back to this passage about comfort. Even as I do this, I will not know what Paul means if I have not handed all my afflictions over to Christ. If I’ve not gone more deeply into the extent of Christ’s affliction, and accepted that his affliction is for me, that it’s mine, in a sense — if I’ve not done that, I’ll miss the consolation. I may not know it. And even if I have found that, I’ll miss Paul’s full experience if I don’t step into some other sufferer’s shoes, and identify. And encourage. And offer Christ as fellow sufferer and Saviour. Only then will I know something of this God of all comfort.
[1] 2 Corinthians 11:16—12:10
Prayer
God of all comfort, comfort me and comfort my friends, my fellows in suffering. We never asked for suffering, but I pray that you will use it.
Especially when suffering would make me doubt you or separate from you, then may the suffering of Jesus speak, speak out of the depths, from his depths to my depths. He remained faithful to you to the death, and faithful to me to the death, the suffering of all suffering and the death of all deaths. May I dwell on these things long enough and listen to you honestly enough to rise up tomorrow ready to comfort the comfortless.