Wednesday, February 16, 2005
What are tears for?
Read:
1 Peter 5:6-11
May the God of all grace, . . . after you have suffered a while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you. —1 Peter 5:10
Bible In One Year: Leviticus 24-27
Author George MacDonald wrote, "God has come to wipe away our tears. He is doing it; He will have it done as soon as He can; and until He can He would have them flow without bitterness; to which end He tells us it is a blessed thing to mourn because of the comfort that is on its way."
While we wait for that comfort, we can be assured that God will not allow us to be tested beyond our ability to bear the trial. Every difficult circumstance is timed with exact precision. Every hard situation is screened through His perfect love. We will not suffer one moment more, nor will we suffer more intensely than is necessary. "To a close-shorn sheep God gives wind by measure" goes an old Basque saying. In other words, God will not allow those most vulnerable to life's difficulties to be overtaken by them.
There may be deep waters through which you must wade; there may be fires through which the ore of your character must pass. But in the midst of them God promises to be your partner, companion, and faithful friend. He will "perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you" (1 Peter 5:10).
And then, when He has finished His work, He will take you home to heaven and wipe away all your tears—forever (Revelation 21:4). —David Roper
He knows our burdens and our crosses,
Those things that hurt, our trials and losses;
He cares for every soul that cries—
God wipes the tears from weeping eyes. —Brandt
Tears are often the telescope by which we can see into heaven.
1 Peter 5:6-11
May the God of all grace, . . . after you have suffered a while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you. —1 Peter 5:10
Bible In One Year: Leviticus 24-27
Author George MacDonald wrote, "God has come to wipe away our tears. He is doing it; He will have it done as soon as He can; and until He can He would have them flow without bitterness; to which end He tells us it is a blessed thing to mourn because of the comfort that is on its way."
While we wait for that comfort, we can be assured that God will not allow us to be tested beyond our ability to bear the trial. Every difficult circumstance is timed with exact precision. Every hard situation is screened through His perfect love. We will not suffer one moment more, nor will we suffer more intensely than is necessary. "To a close-shorn sheep God gives wind by measure" goes an old Basque saying. In other words, God will not allow those most vulnerable to life's difficulties to be overtaken by them.
There may be deep waters through which you must wade; there may be fires through which the ore of your character must pass. But in the midst of them God promises to be your partner, companion, and faithful friend. He will "perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you" (1 Peter 5:10).
And then, when He has finished His work, He will take you home to heaven and wipe away all your tears—forever (Revelation 21:4). —David Roper
He knows our burdens and our crosses,
Those things that hurt, our trials and losses;
He cares for every soul that cries—
God wipes the tears from weeping eyes. —Brandt
Tears are often the telescope by which we can see into heaven.
