Comfort Word Study

This is a word study about the word "comfort".  I find when I do study with a KJV Bible and a concordance, that I find different ways of looking at the same thing and that the Bible has it worded a little different each time.

When I start a word study, I go to the dictionary first.  I used Webster's Seventh New Collegiate Dictionary, G & C Merriam Co., Springfield, MO, 1965.  I find that if I use a dictionary this old, it has more of the old terms and definitions from the Bible.

"Comfort" can be a noun (a thing) or a verb (action).  As a noun it can be a strengthening aid with synonyms of assistance and support.  It can be consolation in trouble or worry and a state of feeling relief or encouragement.  As a verb, it means to give strength and hope, to ease grief or trouble and to make the sense of loss less severe or less painful.

Several verses were about God's attitude toward us.  They are encouraging to me in that respect.

Psalms 23:4 "thy rod and thy staff they comfort me".  The Psalmist sees these as providing for his physical needs.  I think it could also indicate spiritual needs.  Heb 12:8 says that if we aren't chastened, we are bastards rather than sons.  The chastening yields "the peaceable fruit of righteousness". (Hebrews 12:11).  It should be comforting to be kept on the right path.

Ps 119:76 "Let, I pray Thee, they merciful kindness be for my comfort, according to thy word unto thy servant."  When you show someone comfort, it also shows kindness.  Coming from God it also becomes merciful, because we are sinners and do not deserve it.

Isaiah 51:12 "I, even I, am He that comforts you."We are reminded that God is the original source of comforting.  This is backed up by 2 Corinthians 1:3-4 where Paul describes the "God of all comfort" and who comforts us in all our tribulation".

2 Corinthians 1:3-4 God is source of all comfort.  Comfort originates with God toward us in tribulation.  We are to pass on the comfort we have received to others, probably including Bible verses.

2 Corinthians 7:6-7, God comforts those that are cast down. Paul was comforted by the coming of Titus and with the consolation he was comforted.

1 Thessalonians 2:11 God comforts us like a father comforts his children.

2 Thessalonians 2:16-17 We are to comfort our hearts with God's everlasting consolation and good hope.  Jesus establishes us in every good word and work.

Making Good Decisions

My cats seem to have trouble making decisions.  When I open the door for them to go out, they stall, worried about what is out there.  When I put a treat for them, they smell and lick it before eating.  And where they knead their claws is not where they necessarily sleep.  If a new person comes or the vacuum cleaner is too noisy, the decision is easy: run and hide.

Decisions I make seem to fall into those same categories: put off making the decision, get some more information to make the decision on or try to get out of making any decision at all.  Some are spiritual decisions.  If I tithe, will I have enough money for the coming week?  If I tell my co-worker about Jesus, will he take it wrong and be pushed harder away from God?

Maybe the cats have the right idea, just in the wrong order.  We should run to God and trust in the shelter of His wings.  Then for the decision get more information and take time to consider the common sense aspects of the situation. When we run to God first for help and advice, we can trust that whatever decision we make will be controlled by God.

God Likes Details

Doing a knitted lace shawl for the first time was a challenge.  The instructions were in chart form when I was used to written instructions.  I knew what the stitch symbols on the chart meant.

I started off good, but the stitch count was wrong.  I couldn't find where I was getting off and I kept losing my place on the chart.  I ripped it out time and time again. I was getting more and more frustrated.  I finally gave up and asked God for help. Immediately my eyes quit jumping around and I could keep my place in the row.

The next night, I started having the same problem again, jumpy eyes and wrong stitch count. I don't know how long I worked on it, but I finally asked God for help.  He pointed out to me how much time I had spent on the shawl as compared to how much time I spent in the Bible with Him. I was ashamed and asked for forgiveness and eventually completed the shawl.

I was thinking it was too small and not urgent to ask God for help.  We are to acknowledge Him in all things (Prov 3:6, KJV). And if He has our hairs numbered, you know He likes details. We need to come to Him daily and not leave Him as the last resort.

What Can You Do for God

What can you do for a God who owns cattle on a thousand hills and would not tell you if He was hungry? (Ps 50:10,12)  Where do you begin?  Pleasing Him looks like a daunting task.

Obeying the ten commandments is a good place to start, but it cannot take the place of salvation through Jesus.  The Israelites could not keep them, and neither can we.  Do not confuse salvation by works with obeying.

There are things we can do that will affect us and our attitudes.

One is sacrifice.  Jesus said "If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me." (Matt 16:24, KJV).  It starts with small sacrifices: don't add sugar to your cereal, and start the day with Bible reading before you begin the work for the day.  Taking up the cross and follow me require more effort.  Go against your attitude and say nice things to the co-worker you can't stand and follow Jesus example to pray for them.

Giving thanksgiving will take a cut into your pride, but God appreciates it.  Doing so brings blessings. The tenth leper that was healed gave thanks, and Jesus told him that "your faith has made thee whole."(Luke 17:12-19, KJV)

Ps 50:13 says "Let all those that seek thee rejoice and be glad in thee: let such as love thy salvation say continually, the LORD be magnified." (KJV)  What does a magnifier do?  It makes things look bigger and where you can appreciate it more. To magnify the Lord, we can tell others about what God has done for us.  We will be shining a light on God for who He is and what He can do.  It will help people make God seem bigger and appreciate Him more.

Doing these things will bring you into a closer relationship to God.  As you go along, it will become easier and easier to do.  Then you can declare with John that His commandments are not grievous
(I John 5:3, KJV).

Shadow and Image

Heb 10:1a  For the law having a shadow of good things to come, and not the very image of the things.

Shadows don't tell you much about the object throwing the shadow.  Depending on distance from and the angle of the light, it can be either small or big.  The shadow blends into the surroundings at dusk and at night.  As for what the object looks like, you can't usually tell its parts.

The Bible says the law is a shadow of heavenly things.  The law tells us right from wrong, but it does not tell what to do in a specific situation where there are many choices.  The law talks about praise offerings, but it doesn't tell us what songs we'll be singing in heaven.

What we do see is like a painting by an artist.  In a landscape, features are left out because the land is just too big to include everything.  The tree in the painting may be just a brush stroke, but it isn't the exact image of leaves.

Just as the picture is not the exact image of the land, the law is not the exact image of what it is like in heaven.  Jesus added some details when he said to love our enemies and the thought of lust is the same as doing it.

We are only getting a glimpse into the plan God has for us.  When we see answered prayer (especially several at one time), we are getting a peek into God's will in heaven.

What To Do With Frustration

1 Tim. 2:8 "without wrath and doubting" (KJV)

Lately it seems like I've been frustrated a lot.  We need a second car and the ones we have looked at were several thousand dollars with over 100,000 miles.  We have a water leak we couldn't find and we couldn't get a plumber to call us back or come out for an estimate.   My daughter's a mechanic and she got frustrated at trying to put on four springs all at once for the brakes.  She had to walk away from it for a time.

Anger easily follows. Are car dealers being greedy? Are plumbers jerks because they won't call back? Was someone overpaid because they couldn't design it better?

We have been praying for these things for a long time and it seems things are not getting better. It is very easy at these times to think of God as being unfaithful.  There are plenty of people in the Bible that were frustrated too.  Abraham "staggered not" in his faith for a child. (Heb 4:20, KJV).  Hannah, Samuel's mother, was frustrated by being barren, which in turn made her husband frustrated. (1 Sam 1:8)  King David expresses his frustrations in the Psalms.

I prayed for Brenda.  She calmed down and got the job done.  Hannah prayed and she gave birth to Samuel. Abraham talked to God and got his promise of a son. Psalms is a mixture of emotions, but always ends up with praise for God.

The only thing I know what to do for frustration is to pray, claim verses about God's faithfulness, and know that it is important to believe the Bible rather than your feelings.

Right Tools for the Job

Have you ever tried to open a can with your teeth?  Of course not.  You need the right tool, namely a can opener. Verses in the Bible cover any situation  that arises.  The catch is Jesus is who needs to be the one to choose  the tool/verse.

The right verse to claim for someone who is tired and overwhelmed by problems might be  Isa. 50:4 "I should know how to speak a word in season to him that is weary."  (KJV)  The verse that meant a lot to me when I was saved, was John 6:37 "him that comes to me, I will in no wise cast out." (KJV) For someone like me who was always chosen last for games, this verse sounded pretty good to me. The man with palsy that was lowered through the roof needed to hear his sins were forgiven, before being healed.  (Mark 2:1-12)
The right verse is like finding the right tool for the job.  It is a temptation to use a verse about not stealing to a man in jail, but that is not necessarily what he needs to hear.  He may actually need to first hear John 3:16 that God loves him before he is able to receive other verses.
Spending time in the Bible daily keeps the verses fresh in your mind where Jesus can use them.  Luke 21:15 says "For I will give you a mouth and wisdom, which all your adversaries shall not be able to gainsay nor resist."  (KJV) This is a verse that not only covers the verse to say but also the words.