Weep With Those Who Weep
By Susan Klein
“Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn.”
Romans 12:15
One of my most poignant and treasured memories is when my pastor and his wife wept with me. I had just lost a baby, one that they both had fervently prayed God would spare. In His sovereignty, He did not. The next morning, they entered my hospital room, sat on my bed, took my hands, and wept with me. They did not offer words of wisdom, or condolences. They did not quote Scripture to me. They just wept with me in my time of great sorrow. It was a balm for my weary soul and provided just what I needed at that very moment.
The shortest verse in the Bible, Jesus wept (John 11:35), shows our Lord’s humanly felt compassion for His dear friends who were mourning and weeping the death of their beloved. He knew, being God incarnate, that He had the power to change their circumstances, yet He chose first to stop and experience their pain with them. He didn’t try to bandage their hurt with well-meaning words. He did not sit back and watch silently. He saw their grief, which touched His own heart, and He wept with them.
Have you ever wept with someone? The common bond that is experienced at that very moment is unlike anything else! When a person is in the midst of her sorrow or despair, what she desires most is to be comforted, not insightful theology or the recitation of memorized verses for just such an occasion. There comes a time for that, later, when she is on the road to healing. In the heat of the grief, she just wants to know that she is not alone in what she’s feeling! And grieving with her is comforting.
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 1:3-4)
Just as we rejoice with others when they are rejoicing, so ought we take our Lord’s example and weep with those who are weeping. Don’t be afraid to let them see you grieve. They’ll sooo appreciate it!
GOING DEEPER:
1. How do you tend to respond to someone who is grieving? Do you give space, try to offer words of encouragement, quote Scripture...?2. Perhaps you are not a “weepy” sort of person. How might you tangibly grieve with someone in her despair?
FURTHER READING
Isaiah 40; Romans 15:1; Galatians 6:2Susan is our Tuesday Morning Women’s Bible Study Coordinator and one of its teachers. She is also involved in youth outreach ministry.
