Throughout the day I’d think about myself click, click, clicking away and my garage door jerking up and down. Invariably, the image would bring a grin to my lips.--as did the other misadventures that peppered my day: Finding the newly-purchased toilet scrubber beside the flower arrangement on my kitchen counter as if it were part of the décor and catching the belt of my fuzzy, pink bathrobe in the door so that I looked like Pink Panther with his tail in a vice. These incidents had me shaking my head and giggling under my breath. But it was when I shared these antics with my neighbor that the snickers turned to guffaws. Belly-laughs. Nose-snorts. Full blown chortles. Reliving those experiences with her enhanced the silliness and increased my joy.
While sharing magnifies delight, distributing lessens burdens. I hugged a friend of mine last night. A week ago, she buried her only daughter. As we talked, she expressed the comfort she felt knowing others were praying for her and had made themselves available to her in her time of grief. My family’s visit to someone in the hospital evoked a similar response. Likewise, men from our church who assisted the recovery efforts of nearby flood victims received profuse thanksgiving. And similar gratitude was reflected in the local newspapers as they praised Donald Trump’s visit during the crisis.
There’s something about PRESENCE that makes a difference. The simplicity of “being there” adds an element that otherwise would be missing: multiplied joy, divided pain. Something Jesus provides.
Before His crucifixion, He comforted His disciples with the revelation that He would always be with them. He foretold of the hard times they would face. He promised them that they would have trouble. This was not a sign of His absence, as some people insist. Rather, it was another dimension of fellowship with Him, for along with the guaranteed heartache was His assurance that He would be with them through the trouble. The same is true for us. The simplicity of God’s presence makes all the difference in our situations: greater joy, dispersed trouble, the multiplying and dividing that a true friend adds to the equation of our lives.
Tip/Tidbit: Stop. Sit. Inhale. Envision Jesus, for He is near, willing to share your laughter and your tears.