31 Days of 5-Minute Free-Writes
Day 8: Comfort
Welcome to Day 8 of my baby-book shower for Reflections of a Mother’s Heart. Yesterday we got out our dictionaries for a word search, and we learned an important truth about hope. Today let’s have a Bible Sword Drill. How many of you remember Bible Sword Drills from when you were children? We used to do them quite often, at church, school, and summer camp. In case you’re not familiar with the term, I’ll explain briefly. The Word of God is compared to a sword in both Ephesians 6:17 and Hebrews 4:12. Hence the term “Sword drills.”
You may unzip the cover of your Bible if need be, and remove all bookmarks and papers that may get in the way. Are we ready? Let’s begin.
Swords raised. (Hold your Bible above your head, with the spine cradled in your hand.)
Psalm 23:4…
Psalm 23:4…
GO!
Psalm 23:4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for Thou art with me; Thy rod and Thy staff they comfort me.
What comforts us according to this verse? The shepherd’s rod and staff.
How does a shepherd use a rod or staff? This instrument, often hooked on one end (hence, the shepherd’s crook), served many purposes. With it the shepherd could guide his flock, protect them from danger, and correct them when they went astray. All of these aspects are comforting because they give assurance to the sheep that the shepherd will always be there looking out for him and his best interest.
Ready for another verse?
Swords raised…
Romans 15:4…
Romans 15:4…
GO!
Romans 15:4 For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope.
What comforts us according to this verse? The Scriptures
God knew that man would not always want to listen to His voice, so He wrote His message of comfort and love down in a Book. Here in this verse God reveals to us a part of the purpose for the writing of His book: for our learning. The Scriptures teach us patience, and they offer comfort as we read of people who have shared life’s experiences with us, and we see how their stories turned out. The end result of this patience and comfort is hope. I love how this ties in with yesterday’s lesson.
Okay, we have time for one more Bible Sword Drill, so let’s go.
Swords raised…
2 Corinthians 1:3-4…
2 Corinthians 1:3-4…
GO!
2 Corinthians 1:3-4 Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort; Who comforts us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God.
What comforts us according to this verse? God
Don’t you just love the phrase “the God of all comfort”?
So, first we saw the comfort that God gives to us individually. Next, we saw the purpose for which God wrote His Book, that it may comfort us as we read and study it. Now we tie all of this together and see that, just as the Father has comforted us, so we ought to comfort others. That is why we write. Your story and mine will be a comfort to someone—but only if that someone can read it. If it stays in your head, or on your laptop, how is it going to help anyone else but you? (I would even dare to ask if it’s helping you by staying there. And yes, I’m including myself in that you.)
Let this be a comfort to you: Your story matters. How do I know that? Because you matter, and your story is an extension of you. You are precious in God’s sight. I believe as you and I fully grasp how loved we are by God, we will let go of fears and inhibitions, and we will humbly write to share our stories with those are waiting to hear them.
Kate Motaung, host of Five-Minute Friday, has challenged us to 31 Days of Five-Minute Free Writes, in which we will explore the telling of our story. This isn’t the first such challenge of hers, but it is the first for me. Thank you for sharing it with me.
For a list of links to all my posts for this challenge, click here.
¹Webster’s 1828 Dictionary, part of the Deluxe Library Version 8.1 of StudyLamp Software: Broken Arrow, OK, 1995-2017.
The Abundant Heart 