Aware of Suffering

In recent days God has made me ever so aware of suffering around me. Whether it's in my own life or in the lives of my friends, acquaintances, or people I just meet on the street, God is revealing to me a greater picture of life that I'm so open to right now.

Walking through church, saying hi to new and old faces, elicited deep responses. The friendly and meaningful "hi" doesn't always get a deep response. I'm always eager to listen to people's stories, but this seemed different. Many who opened up after the casual passing "hi" gave me a moment of pause. They simply gushed their story to me. It doesn't always happen, but then again, these times are uncommon also. Lives were broken, painful stories of broken families, struggles with grief over the loss of loved ones, struggles with strongholds, the stories didn't seem to stop.

Taking kids to feed the homeless, collecting bags of groceries for the needy, listening to a friend who deeply hurts. Seeing prayer boards posted for the lives of the young seemingly snatched from this world too soon...The stories haven't stopped. Our lives never do. The struggles we face never do. The struggles and suffering people go through doesn't stop.

When this pattern continued throughout the week I knew God was speaking to me something new in the sense of a lesson or truth I needed to learn.

The lesson I'm learning so far...never stop caring. No matter your situation, caring for others, taking time to notice and appreciate the person. Stopping, gazing intently and compassionately into their eyes to see their loss or struggle...that's what I'm learning.

"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. For as we share abundantly in Christ's sufferings, so through Christ we share abundantly in comfort too." 2 Corinthians 1:3-5