双语灵修（葛培理牧师）：8 月 31 日 主的安慰

8 月 31 日

主的安慰

愿颂赞归与我们的主耶稣基督的父神，就是发慈悲的父，赐各样安慰的神。我们在一切患难中，他就安慰我们，叫我们能用神所赐的安慰，去安慰那遭各样患难的人。

哥林多后书 1:3-4

一位亲爱的朋友和值得信赖的顾问曾告诉我，当我们问神“为什么？”时，最大的试探就临到我们了。

正如汉姆利所说，“面对苦难，我们很难理解临到我们身上的事有什么意义，我们会怀疑信实的神是否公平。然而，这种时刻可能是我们生命中最有意义的时刻。”

1975 年，神所重用的仆人保罗·利特尔在一场车祸中丧生。我立即问神：“为什么？”  保罗是神的一位年轻杰出的策划人和圣经教师，一位神学教授、大学基督徒团契的领袖，也曾是我们团队的成员。我相信他的妻子玛丽在痛苦中也一定问过“为什么？”然而，几个月后，当她来参加我们团队的退修会时，她以一种神奇的灵力，与我们团员的妻子们分享了她的得胜。与其说是我们安慰她，倒不如说是她安慰了我们。

亚历山大·诺威尔曾说过：“神安慰我们不仅是为了让我们得安慰，而是为了让我们成为安慰别人的人。”我们要把神安慰我们的安慰传递下去。

环顾四周，你有无数的机会可以去安慰别人，不仅是在他们失去亲人的时候，也在我们日常生活中经历痛苦的时候。

当我们成为别人的安慰和鼓励时，我们常会惊讶地看到，这种安慰竟然多次地回报在我们自己身上。

今日祷告：

天父，求祢开启我的眼睛，让我看到机会，把祢的安慰带给在基督里的兄弟姐妹，也带给那些失丧的人，在忧伤中得安慰，把耶稣的福音带给他们，叫他们得救；奉耶稣的名祷告，阿们。

August 31

COMFORTED BY CHRIST

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.                      

2 Corinthians 1:3-4, RSV

A dear friend and trusted counselor once told me that sometimes the greatest test comes to us when we ask God the question, “Why?”

As Charles Hembree has pointed out, “In the full face of afflictions it is hard to see any sense to things that befall us, and we want to question the fairness of a faithful God. However, these moments can be the most meaningful of our lives.”

One of God’s great servants, Paul Little, was killed in an automobile accident in 1975. I immediately asked God, “Why?” Paul was one of God’s outstanding young strategists and Bible teachers. He was a theological professor, a leader of InterVarsity Christian Fellowship, and a former member of our team. I am sure his wife, Marie, must have asked in the agony of her heart, “Why?” And yet, a few months later when she came to our team retreat, she manifested a marvelous spirit as she shared her victory with the wives of our team members. Instead of our comforting her, she was comforting us.

Alexander Nowell once said, “God does not comfort us that we may be comforted but that we may be comforters.” We are to pass along the comfort with which God has comforted us.

Look around you. There are countless opportunities to comfort others, not only in the loss of a loved one, but also in the daily distress that so often creeps into our lives.

When we are a comfort and encouragement to others, we are sometimes surprised at how it comes back to us many times over.

Pray for the Day:

Father, open my eyes to see the opportunities to bring Your comfort to my brothers and sisters in Christ, and also to the lost, to comfort them in their sorrows and to bring them the Good News of Jesus for their salvation; in Jesus’ Name, Amen