When Paul writes to the Corinthians, he writes to people facing challenges. In the opening verses of his second letter to them he says,
May the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ be blessed! He is the compassionate Father and God of all comfort. He’s the one who comforts us in all our trouble so that we can comfort other people who are in every kind of trouble. We offer the same comfort that we ourselves received from God. That is because we receive so much comfort through Christ in the same way that we share so many of Christ’s sufferings. (2 Cor. 1:3-5)
Comfort. It’s not a concept a lot of us think about in the shadow of COVID-19. Yet comfort we have received, and comfort we can offer.
Not that we’re comfortable. That’s a different concept. As we said yesterday, while God doesn’t cause difficulties, he goes with us through them, and he uses them for good. Certainly we should seek comfort for ourselves, and we can take comfort in knowing God goes with us through our difficulties. We can also find greater comfort for ourselves by offering comfort to others. Fred Rogers said to “look for the helpers.” He knew that when we help others, we also bless ourselves.
While we must maintain our physical distance from each other at this time, through telephone calls, letters, emails, Facetime, Skype, etc., we may still support each other. Bless someone today, and in the process bless yourself.
Peace.