Comfort. It's an interesting word that can mean different things under different circumstances. How would you comfort a crying child with a scraped knee, for instance? Would you give a hug or a kind word? How about a kiss on the wound or a piggyback ride? Would you do the same for an elderly man who recently lost his wife? Of course not. In that situation, your way of comforting him could be by visiting him regularly to keep him company. Or, you might stock up his home with food. You could maybe help him clean up his home or run some of his errands.
As we can see, the form of comfort will be different depending on what happened. Yet, the objective is the same - to support the person and take their mind off the problem, even if temporarily.
Despite our best intentions, human beings are limited in how much comfort they can offer. God, on the other hand, can do so much more for a person in need of comfort. There's a reason why He is called the God of all comfort in 2 Corinthians 1:3, meaning He can be the comfort a person needs no matter what they are going through. There is no limit to how He can comfort those in need or how much comfort He can provide.
And that's why we must go to our God for all the comfort we need. In fact, when we don't turn to Him, we are liable to make mistakes and sin. The Israelites made this error when they were at the base of Mt. Sinai (Exodus 32). At that time, Moses had gone up the mountain to meet with the Lord and had been there for a while. The people doubted whether Moses would return and wanted the solace of a god they could see. They then asked Aaron to build them a golden calf - an idol. Instead of calling on the God who had miraculously led them out of Egypt, they turned to a man made object for comfort.
We do the same thing in our own way. A coworker upsets us and we go home fuming. What do we do? We call someone and say disparaging things about the coworker, thereby engaging in gossip, slander and possibly more. We could have simply expressed ourselves to God before venting to someone else. Had we done so, our anger would have been blunted, so we could have simply shared facts without being mean in our speech. What about when we come home after a particularly stressful day? Instead of first dumping the burdens of the day at God's feet or thanking Him for getting us through it, we sink into the sofa and turn on a program that doesn't require much thought. Another option is that we open our devices and scroll mindlessly on social media. Or, we open a bottle of wine and sink our sorrows into that.
The list of ways that we turn to everything other than God for comfort is endless. Yet, God wants to be our first port of call when we are going through things. We shouldn't deprive Him of His responsibility to shower us with comfort and His great desire to show us His compassion. We should call on God, the Comforter. We should lean on His shoulder and speak to His ever-listening ear.
We simply need to ask for God's comfort. After all, we are told to ask in order to receive in Matthew 7:7. There is ample scripture to help us, such as Psalm 71:21 which states, You will increase my honor and comfort me once more. We can also remind the Lord of His duty to provide comfort via Isaiah 51:12 - I alone am the one who comforts you. Why, then, are you afraid of mortals, who must die, of humans, who are like grass? (GWT). There is also Psalm 23:4 - Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.
And when we have received the Lord's comfort, we can praise with Isaiah 49:13 - Shout for joy, O heavens, and rejoice, O earth, And break forth into singing, O mountains! For the LORD has comforted His people And will have compassion on His afflicted (AMP).
No matter the issue, don't hesitate to ask God to be your comforter. Call on Him to wrap you up in His arms. Ask Him to be whatever you need Him to be in the troubling moments. God loves each of us and wants us to consider Him capable of comforting us in our times of need.
See you at Noon EST for fellowship. God bless you.
CLOSING PRAYER
Another hour down, another gathering to honor You with praises and petitions for others. Thank You Mighty King for this privilege. Thank You for bringing us together from all the corners of the world to come before You again.
Great God, You are wonderful and I thank You for this blessing.
Remember all who honored You and those who will via today's message. Please, dear Lord, let them step into Your embrace. Let them experience You as the Comforter. The God who is compassionate. May Your gracious hand rest upon them and may they be blessed. May their lives announce Your glory and power. May they be testimonies to Your greatness, IJMN, Amen.
LAST 10 MINUTES
So do you want God to be your comforter? Are you ready to turn to Him first when you need solace instead of things and other people? If so, let's not delay in saying the following prayer...
Comfort, comfort my people, says your God.
Lord that's what You said in Isaiah 40:1. I am Yours, dear Father, and so today, I call on You to comfort me. Be my solace in times of trouble and stress. Show me Your promised compassion all the days of my life. Hold me forever in Your arms. Increase my greatness, And comfort me on every side as stated in Psalm 71:21. By Your loving kindness and grace, I too shall burst into song and rejoice when I say that the Lord God Almighty has comforted me (Isaiah 52:9). IJMN, Amen.
Thank You, God the Comforter.
Lord, I thank You for the opportunity to join someone in prayer yesterday. The enemy tried multiple times to stop us from praying but You are the God for whom nothing is impossible and I praise You for opening the door that could not be shut so the necessary petitions could be lifted up to You.
I return today, good God, in faith. I thank You because Your own Son said, For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them (Matthew 18:20). As we gathered, I know that You were there with us. Hallelujah, my God! The God who answers by fire. Just as You did on Mt. Carmel, so shall You move in a way to show all who see that You are the only God. That no false god can move without Your sanction and because You are a jealous God, You will show how powerless they are.
Great and mighty God, who is like unto Thee? The God whose power knows no bounds. The God who knows all and is all. The Alpha and Omega.
I thank You. Yes, I thank You in advance for coming to the aid of our prayer subjects. I thank You for all You have done and will surely rejoice with others when we finally touch the result of our petition.
Hosanna in the highest!!!
Good God, You are the Almighty. Nobody compares to You. Father, thank You for hearing my prayer for people that they come to a knowledge of You as You promised in Jeremiah 24:7. Thank You for giving people a desire for You. Thank You for whetting their appetites for more of You. Thank You for letting hearts clamor for You. Thank You for kindly pouring out Your Spirit on all mankind in accordance with Your word in Joel 2:28. Be glorified, Lord our Redeemer.
Now and forever more, IJMN, Amen.
From sis FJ - Abba, the God of all comfort. I praise You for always being compassionate to those who belong to You. oh God of all comfort, please reach out and comfort fellow Peppers and believers in their time of trouble. Please then equip them so they can comfort others "with the comfort we ourselves receive from God" (2 Cor 1:4). amen in Jesus name
Heavenly Father, I thank You for You are He who wants His people to experience the fullness of life that You alone can give.
As such, I lift up those who are dealing with thoughts of self harm and suicide ideation. Lord, I stand upon Your word in Psalm 118:17 - I will not die but live, and will proclaim what the LORD has done.
I hereby declare that every spirit whispering death and trying to cause Your people to harm themselves is defeated in the name of Jesus. I proclaim that Your people shall live and not die. That they shall declare Your good works in the land of the living. I speak over them Your word in Psalm 27:13 - Still I am certain to see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living. Instead of death, they shall see the goodness of the Lord.
By Your grace, my God, they shall walk before You, right here in the land of the living (Psalm 116:9) and the enemy of their soul shall be put to shame, IJMN, Amen.
Almighty God! You are the Alpha and the Omega. Jehovah Shammah. You reign forever and Your faithful ones give You all the glory!
Lord, I lift up Your children in P&P who have ventured into entrepreneurship or who will. Thank You for being the God from whom all blessings flow.
I know satan wants to keep them from experiencing success in business, but what the devil wants is irrelevant for the earth is the Lord's and everything in it. The world and all who are in it are subject to Your complete and irreversible authority (Psalm 24:1). Hallelujah!
And so Lord, I thank You for blessing Your children with the capacity to go forth in business ventures. I call on You with the word in Deuteronomy 33:11 - Bless all his skills, LORD, and be pleased with the work of his hands. Strike down those who rise against him, his foes till they rise no more.”
IJMN, Amen.
PRAYER TIME
We have praised the Lord and now it is time to pray for people's needs. Call on God to help them. Ask Him to bring them comfort.
Pray for someone else the way you would want someone to pray for you.
God, my Comforter. Thank You. When I need You, You are there. When I need Your support, I can always count on You.
Thank You God, for when I don't even realize it, You are working things out for my good. Thank You, so much, for being mindful of me at all times.
And You do this for all Your children, never showing favoritism but instead loving all with the abounding love You have.
God, I don't understand how and why You love me so. But, I thank You for being the lover of my soul and everything about me. Even my flaws. You love me so much to gently help me to overcome those too.
Thank You, God. Nobody else deserves my adoration. Only You!!
Father, I want to give You my worship. I am grateful to be known by You. And I am very thankful to know You in a real way.
Thank You for being the God who is always there for me.
Almighty God, You are my all in all and I praise You today and forever.
Glory be to Jehovah!!!
From sis OD -
What a message…. I am so so guilty of this… God thank you for the reminder and pls forgive me for leveraging other ways to deal with my comfort.
I come to your first…. Thank you father for the vessel you used to send this message. May your word be praised always
From C - Go before me Lord fight my battles for me Jesus Amen
I’m going in for my last exam y’all
From M22 - Thank you Abba for being our comforter in good times and in difficulties. Thank you Abba for helping us rest in you in our season of weariness and when we feel overwhelmed. Help to us to seek you above everything else. Help us to rest in that divine comfort you have provided us with. IJMN amen.
PRAISE TIME
It's time to show you have a Heavenly Father. The God of all comfort.
Wherever you are right now, abandon yourself in praising Him. Glorify Him. Tell Him why He's great.
Love up on the Lord.
From PO - @FFJ Without fail, you consistently come through. I thank my heavenly Abba I’ve found you. I need this message today. I’m learning to be a Born-Again Christian and the enemy’s attacks have confirmed I’m on the right path. For all of my spiritual sisters experiencing the same, may the blood of Yeshua sustain you.
From EC - Amen and good morning ladies!
From C - Galatians 6:6-7, 9-10 NIV
“Nevertheless, the one who receives instruction in the word should share all good things with their instructor. Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. 9 Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.”
Blessed and wonderful we thank you for your mercies that renew us day by day! We thank you for loving and caring for us, for providing for us! Lord we uplift this day into Your glorious hands praying that You walk with us, ahead, before and by our side, we pray that Your presence is felt in every moment of our day as we rise to begin our day’s Abba we thank you for lifting us up when many did not. We bless your wonderful and mighty name. IJN we pray Amen
From M22 - Thank you Abba for another beautiful day, thank you for holding our hands from Monday through Thursday and to help us witness another P and P. We give you all the glory, worship and praise Abba. You are deserving of it all. Amen.
Thank you for today's word sis @FFJ. Today's word is a beautiful reminder for us to learn to rest in God's authority in seasons of weariness and when everything seems so fast-paced for us. I pray that we learn to approach God for comfort in good times and in difficulties. He's the one person that will allow in us rest in him without judgement. I pray we will continue to rest in him knowing that he will comfort us and take care of us IJMN amen.
From BI - Thank you Lord for showing me mercy and letting me see this day that You have made, I will rejoice and be glad in it. Thank You for Your signs, wonders, breakthroughs and miracles. Thank You for my angels and for placing an hedge of protection around me. My King of kings, I honour, worship and adore You. You alone are worthy of all praise now and forever Amen.
Thank you for today's word sis @FFJ. In God, we have all in one. I marvel at His Power. Thank You Lord for being a great comforter to us. Thank You Abba for making Yourself available to us and that we can always approach Your throne of grace. I pray our faith continues to grow and we don't need to think twice about turning to God first. May God's Spirit grant us comfort, peace healing and guidance IJMN Amen.