The Gift of Tears

Sample of Daily Encounter by Dick Innes

"Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep" (Romans 12:15).

An article in Parables, Etc., shares how "Author Leo Buscaglia once talked about a contest he was asked to judge. The purpose of the contest was to find the most caring child. The winner was a four-year-old child whose next-door neighbor was an elderly gentleman who had recently lost his wife. Upon seeing the man cry, the little boy went into the old gentleman's yard, climbed onto his lap, and just sat there.

"When his mother asked him what he had said to the neighbor, the little boy said, 'Nothing, I just helped him cry.'"

By the time I was five years of age I had learned that "big men don't cry," so I learned well never to cry. As an adult, however, I came to realize that I had a problem because I couldn't cry. So I asked God to give me tears back! Whew! He did!

Not so long ago a friend from church lost her teenage daughter. She was well on a Friday. The following Friday was her funeral. This friend had already lost her son during the Vietnam war. Another friend and I visited her on Saturday night. It was incredibly sad. I had nothing to say. At times like these words can seem so empty and meaningless. I simply sat on the floor and wept with her.

Rare are the friends who know how to weep with those who weep. May God help us all to learn how to be this kind of a friend.

Suggested prayer:
"Dear God, thank you not only for the gift of laughter, but also for the gift of tears. Please help me to always be sensitive to the hurts and pains of others and learn how to weep with those who weep, as you did when your friend, Lazarus, died. Gratefully in Jesus' name. Amen."

My Thoughts:

Now I know why I have so much tears to spare, not only for myself, but for others too. For me, they wash away all the sadness in my heart so I can continue my journey again and again. For others, they show that I care and feel for them. Thank God for the gift of tears.

When I am sad and crying, please don't ask me to stop crying... cry with me if you can. After the rain comes the sunshine and rainbow. After the tears come release and peace.