The Source of All Comfort
I could hear his words of comfort and encouragement over the hum of the engine. It was hard to believe that he was so apprehensive about the trip. He didn't think he had the skills or the knowledge to actually DO missions. And there was the other thing. It was a physical problem, a genetic abnormality. It had affected his appearance, which had resulted in plenty of cruelty during his teen years. He didn't want to make others uncomfortable and he didn't want to be the object of ridicule either. In fact, he just wasn't sure if he was the man for the job. Yet, it seemed that God was telling him to go with us.
It was almost 10:00pm as the van rolled along the winding West Virginia road. Most nights had been noisy as we delivered chiildren to their homes. Songs, crafts, and Bible School refreshments helped pump up the volume. But on this particular night, there was only the hum of the engine and the passionate voice of my young friend as he reassured a teenaged girl about the gracious love of God. She was a gangly teen with glasses and a ruddy complexion. During Bible School week, she had been quiet and withdrawn. On this particular night, my friend had encouraged her to talk. She spoke to him about her awkwardness and the rejection she had experienced from other teens at school and in the mobile home park where she lived. Her pain was real and intense and my friend could relate.
There is no professional counselor or pastor who could have had a greater effect on her that night. My friend simply focused compassionately on her pain. He understood her and listened quietly as she vented. He had been there. He had endured the same type of treatment. With a Christ-like gentleness, he talked about family and church as support systems. But perhaps his most comforting words were about the unconditional, life-changing, attitude-adjusting love of God.
She disappeared with a wave and a smile into the shadows around her front door. At that moment, I understood why God had so strongly urged my friend to go to West Virginia. There was a fifteen year old girl there who needed exactly what my friend could offer. Paul wrote to the Corinthian Church that it is ". . . the God of all comfort Who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort that we ourselves received from God." That's exactly what my friend did. God used him to do for this young girl what I, a trained pastor, could not do. In fact, there was no one else on our team who could have had as dramatic an effect on her life. Out of his own suffering, he offered empathy, comfort, support, and Christ.
If there is one good thing that can result from our suffering, it is that suffering can equip us to be channels of God's comfort and love to others. When pain and pressure invade your life, look to Christ for comfort and hope. And remember that suffering offers prepartion for opportunities to share that comfort and hope with others.
Don't become too busy or bitter to let Christ work through you to help someone who is hurting.
2 Corinthians 1:3-4
