//Women at the Well Ministries//
Don’t Worry
Minute Meditation – God’s Tears
God hears the cries of the poor, the anguish of parents whose children are victims of gun violence, and the anger of those who have been marginalized and oppressed and whose history has been hidden by people of privilege and power. God also delights in the singing of sparrows in the early morning and the flashing of fireflies on a summer evening. God feels the pain of an injured baby bird, fallen out of its nest, and the loneliness of a pet mourning the death of its human companion.
God’s experience of the world is cruciform in nature. The cross is more than an event on Calvary’s hill. The cross reveals God embedded in all creation, sharing our joys and sorrows. When Jesus wept over Jerusalem, he was crying God’s tears. When Jesus died on the cross, his pain was real, and so was God’s. God feels the anguish of those who have been abandoned and persecuted. God has not abandoned you. Do you feel that?
—from the book Simplicity, Spirituality, Service: The Timeless Wisdom of Francis, Clare, and Bonaventure by Rev. Dr. Bruce G. Epperly
//Franciscan Media//
Rest in the Sweet Presence of God
//Encouragement in the Lord//
Jesus Knows the Burdens We Carry
//Hope Faith & Kindness//
When My . . .
Your Tears
//Love Notes//
Meditation of the Day – Our Tears are Not Enough
“Let us not fancy that if we cry a great deal we have done all that is needed—rather we must work hard and practice the virtues: that is the essential—leaving tears to fall when God sends them, without trying to force ourselves to shed them. Then, if we do not take too much notice of them, they will leave the parched soil of our souls well watered, making it fertile in good fruit; for this is the water which falls from Heaven. … I think it is best for us to place ourselves in the presence of God, contemplate His mercy and grandeur and our own vileness and leave Him to give us what He will, whether water or drought, for He knows best what is good for us; thus we enjoy peace and the devil will have less chance to deceive us.”— St. Teresa of Avila, p.147
//The Catholic Company//
He Will Wipe Away Our Tears
Walking With the Lord
Seeking God in Suffering – News That Devastates
News that Devastates
DAY 1 | Psalm 77:1-4
I cried out to God for help; I cried out to God to hear me.— Psalm 77:1
The phone call. The knock on the door. The doctor’s words. The death pronouncement. Many of us can remember times in our lives when we received news that we immediately knew would change the course of our future. Waves of dread ran through our bodies, and we could barely stand. “Oh, God!”
For followers of Christ, calling out to our God—the source of our life and strength and hope—is a natural response to shock, fear, disbelief, and grief. Sometimes “Oh, God!” is all we can say as our mind races and our world blurs. It’s our 911 call to the God of the universe.
One of the wonderful things about the Psalms is that, by example, we are granted permission to cry out to God in desperation. It’s human to fear death when we’re diagnosed with cancer. And it’s human to want to die when we lose a precious child or spouse. God’s people are not required to be stoic in difficult times. Instead, we are invited to collapse into the arms of God, who will hold us tightly, catch our tears, and carry us through whatever lies ahead.
The writer of this psalm does not rush to resolution but lingers in the distress and sleeplessness of overwhelming grief. He merely asks God to help and to hear. And that’s more than enough.
Oh, God, sometimes life hits us with such hard blows that we can barely breathe. Thank you that when we feel overwhelmed with fear or grief, you hear our cries and come near to us. Amen.
