Give Comfort, Get Comfort

Men and women of God, wherever we find them in the Scriptures, seem to be masters of whatever situation in which they find themselves. For example, when Paul and Silas were thrown into a Roman prison for preaching the gospel, they sang praises at midnight. The walls shook, and the Lord freed them. The jailer was about to commit suicide, but Paul told him not to harm himself because all the prisoners were still there. The next thing you know, Paul was at the jailer’s house, having dinner. The jailer washed the stripes on Paul’s back, and Paul led the man’s household to the Lord (see Acts 16:25–34). Paul entered the place as a prisoner and left the place in charge.

Then there was Joseph, who was sold into slavery by his brothers. There was no hope of any kind for him. But through a turn of events, he became the second-most powerful man in the entire kingdom of Egypt. Effectively he was running the country.

In the midst of adversity, Paul and Joseph helped other people. They always seemed to rise above the circumstances and be the ones who led. And believers today can do the same thing.

One of the best things we can do when we are suffering is to help someone else. Maybe that doesn’t seem to make sense. But it actually makes all the sense in the world. It can be very easy to have a pity party, to draw back into our little cocoons and isolate ourselves from everyone else. But if we will go out and help other people, we will find comfort as we are distributing it. We will be the beneficiaries of what we are giving to others. Do you know someone who is in need of God’s comfort today?