Friday, February 19, 2016

When Tears Begin to Flow

"Jesus wept." - John 11:35

Mothers know what tears are for.

“Whaaaaaa!!!”

That very first cry, in the moments just after a child has been born, says it all.

He’s been pushed out of his comfort zone, out from where it was warm and safe, into an environment he doesn’t recognize. As his lungs fill with air for the very first time, his eyes open to a bright new world, and his body shivers from the cold he’s never felt before. He has struggled to get here, and yet now … now, he’s not sure why.

“Whaaaaaa!!!”

His cry rings out to signal his distress. His fear. His confusion.

Moments later, he finds loving arms to hold him.

“There, there, it’s OK.” 

The words sound soothing. The arms feel secure.

It is OK. Love is here.

Mothers know that tears don’t always mean sadness.

Sometimes they’re from joy.

Sometimes they’re from pain.

Sometimes, they are from just being so tired, so overwhelmed, that you just feel you can’t go on. Or maybe you can go on, but you just need to rest. You need to vent. You need to grieve. Or you just need to breathe…

Tears say “I need.”

From the moment we are born, we need.

We need food. We need clothing and shelter. We need comfort and care when we are hurt.

Above all, we need love.

I was reading another blogger’s post today, in which she shared about the pain and medical procedures she was having to endure as a result of her rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and a rare bone disease. She wrote about an encounter she had with a nurse who asked how she was doing.
"The tears had begun to flow and we just sat there in silence. She understood."
My friend had reached a moment at the hospital where she just couldn’t express what she was feeling in words anymore. She needed to cry. She needed to express the pain, the fear, the grief … all of it. And she needed love and understanding. But there were no words to express all the need that was bottled up inside her. And so, she wept.

As a Christian, it’s easy to talk about “the joy of the Lord” and expect to feel the “peace that passes understanding” even during hard times. And make no mistake, I do my part to try and stay in that joy and peace. I pray. I study my Bible. I meditate on God’s promises. I worship. I fellowship with other believers. All of that helps.

But sometimes…

The tears fall.

A few weeks ago, my mother went into the hospital with pneumonia and within a few days, was put on life support as a last-ditch attempt to save her life.

When they put her on the ventilator, I wept tears filled with sorrow.

When they told me they had removed the breathing tube and she was able to breathe on her own again, I wept tears of joy.

Next week, she will undergo major surgery for a different problem. It is high risk because of her underlying medical conditions.  I know that and so does she. When I wish her well, as they take her off to the operating room, I already know that - no matter how strong my faith - all the love I feel for my mother, the joyful memories of the happy times we have spent together, the hopes and dreams for all I still want to share with her, and the fear of losing her, will well up inside me ... Once again, I will weep.

I am not ashamed of my tears.

Even Jesus wept. He wept when He saw his friend Lazarus, dead. He wept when his other friend, Judas, betrayed Him. He wept when He saw what was to come on the cross. It didn’t matter that He knew the ultimate ending, His glorious resurrection.
When life – and the prospect of death – was overwhelming, Jesus wept. 
Jesus isn’t a weakling. He is strong enough to conquer temptation, sin and death! And yet, here on earth, dressed in mortal flesh, even Jesus needed a good cry sometimes.

When His flesh cried out, “I hurt!” Jesus needed to let out His human emotions and pain, in order to let in the love of the Father and the power of the Holy Spirit.

Jesus’ tears meant the same as ours. His tears said, “I need…” 

Just as Jesus needed the love of the Father and the power of the Holy Spirit to give Him the strength to overcome what He faced - to take him from suffering and death to life again – so we need God to carry us through our trials and our tears.

On any given day, my tears may mean many things. When I’ve been pushed out of my comfort zone, in unfamiliar territory, and I’m scared. I’m confused. I’m overjoyed with happiness. I’m overcome with grief. I’m hungry, angry, lonely or tired. I’m stressed and overwhelmed. When I need comfort, I need shelter, I need rest.

In the end, when I let it all out – when the tears fall from my eyes with an outpouring of unspoken emotion – I will let in the Holy Spirit and find strength again. Whatever I’m going through won’t last forever. This too shall pass. I will fall into God’s loving arms and feel His warm embrace, as He helps me to my feet again.

There, there, it’s OK. Love is here.

When Tears Begin to Flow originally appeared on Spring Sight blog, by Linda W. Perkins. Click here for more posts. Get even more encouragement by following me on FacebookPinterest, and Twitter

Many of Spring Sight's posts can also be found each week on Crystal Storms' #IntentionalTuesday,  Kelly Balarie's #RaRaLinkUp, Holly Barrett's Testimony Tuesday, Arabah Joy's Grace & Truth, Holley Gerth's Coffee for Your Heart,  and Woman to Woman's Word Filled Wednesday. This week, I am also linking up with Jennifer Dukes Lee


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18 comments:

  1. Thank you Linda for your inspiring & uplifting post. I love your faith & your writing is such a blessing to read. God bless Sam xx

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    1. Many blessings back to you, Sam. Praying for you to be completely healed. To God be the glory! Your faith inspires me every day and if I ever get to Australia, we are going to share a cup of coffee. :-)

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  2. Tears are such a reflective part of our human nature that we sometimes miss the cleansing power they bring into our situations. Tears... I can cry a river at the drop of a hat and still, there are times when they don't come... but need to. Isn't that funny? I am so thankful for that peace that passes all understanding when either of those moments are my reality because when His presence relieves me, the tears of joy and gratitude always come.

    Praying your dear one makes it through the difficult procedure and you are comforted by His Presence through it all.

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    1. Thank you so much, Dawn. I have those "I can't cry, even though I want to" moments also, and at times, I find myself even laughing instead of crying. I'm grateful for those moments too; just knowing the Lord is with me no matter how I'm feeling makes a difference!

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  3. "Tears say 'I need'." What I great insight. As a mother of an emotional 7 year old girl, this is a good reminder to me. Just last night, after displaying a lot of tears over things that seem silly to me, I went up to her room, and just sat with her and talked for 15 minutes. Almost immediately there was a change in her spirit. I realized after that that she just needed some attention and hugs from me. Thank you for sharing! I said a prayer for the upcoming operation of your mother, that there would be peace and comfort, and that everything would go smoothly. Joining you from #Testimony Tuesday.

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    1. Thanks for your prayers, Michelle. I have a young daughter too and can relate to your story! Back when she was little and couldn't communicate well, she went into a teary tirade over wanting a banana. At first I thought it was ridiculous, but like you, it hit me just how frustrating being hungry and not being able to tell me "I really need this!" was to her. I became a much better listener after that. :-)

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  4. Thank you for this beauty today. I have wept many tears recently for so many reasons. I understand what it feels like to have a parent in the balance and the cleansing tears that are needed to handle the vastness of what it feels like.

    In the book, Secret of the Secret Places, by Bob Sorge, he writes that tears are "liquid words" and those words have really stuck with me. Praying you are blessed today and for God's healing strength for your mom.

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    1. Thank you, Mary. "Liquid words" - I like that. Yes, how often our tears speak louder than the words we speak. Blessings to you today.

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  5. I shed some of my own tears today and it was needed. Thank you for the reminder to let them flow and not apologize. Thanks for linking up your words on the @RaRaLinkup too.

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    1. My grandmother used to tell me to bottle up my tears in a jar for her, because she was old and all her tears had run out. I've heard our tears are precious to God too. Glad you were able to get them out and offer them to the Lord today. God bless you, Katie!

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  6. Tears are powerfully healing. They wash away the pain that caused them to fall in the first place.

    I love the way you write.

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    1. Thank you so much, Lux! I appreciate your kind words. May you be blessed today with joy and peace, and find God's comfort and healing in the midst of any tears that may fall.

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  7. Hi Linda!
    What a significant reflection on tears! For a long time, they came very hard for me due to certain family of origin connections related to them. I needed to allow the feelings and tears to flow to bring healing to that wound as well. I identify with how you felt when your mother went on a ventilator. I went through that with my dad 21 years ago this month. He had been so healthy and suddenly pneumonia grabbed him and would not let go. He went home to be with the Lord 5 1/2 weeks later and then there were more tears. So glad to be your neighbor today at the Linkup on Woman to Woman.

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    1. Thanks for sharing your story about your dad, Pam. My mother was due to have surgery tomorrow, but landed in the hospital - again - this past Sunday. She is still there, trying to get well enough to even have the surgery. Yes, it is a long, uneven road. We can keep our eyes on the Lord, but even then, we just don't know when we will fall at his feet, in tears, a blessed mess. Glad that we could meet via W2W!

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  8. Loved the part about a friend crying with you. I've had friends who simply wept in silence with me and it's so lovely when someone loves you enough to cry with you. Thanks for linking up to Testimony Tuesday!

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    1. Yes, Holly, it takes a special person to just be there when you're hurting...when you don't need words, but rather just a hug or a hand to hold. Thanks for stopping by today!

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  9. There is such catharsis in being able to weep and especially having someone to do it with you. It is so nice when someone will let you cry and not try to fix the moment.

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    1. Yes, indeed, Judy. Thanks for stopping in today. God bless!

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