Comfort: Together-Strength
Recently, I’ve come to learn that comfort is a word where its meaning has evolved over the years. Its original meaning might not necessarily correlate to how we often use and view it today. Not that our current use of the word is incorrect…but maybe it has an even deeper meaning.
I stumbled across this perspective of the word comfort in a reading plan that I started in my YouVersion Bible app last week. I started a plan called “When God Doesn’t Make Sense”. I’ve been a Christian long enough to know that we can’t always explain things that happen, even though inside our innermost being we just can’t help but to wonder WHY at times.
A “why” moment
I was in one of those “why” modes last week. These moments for me are typically short-lived because I know I’m not guaranteed an answer on this side of heaven. However, I still find myself indulging in them from time to time…hence why I looked up and started the reading plan about God not making sense.
A little over a week ago, we had a very difficult death in our family. My cousin’s wife passed away after a very long health battle. She was very young, only in her 30’s, and the mother of 2 small children. Honestly, I didn’t know her well at all, but I know enough from other family members to know that she was a godly woman. The family has been believing for her healing and recovery for quite some time now.
Her family recently uprooted their lives and relocated to Minnesota to be near the Mayo Clinic where she was being treated. She had been awaiting a liver transplant. After numerous false alarms, they finally found a match. Unfortunately, on the day of her surgery—the day that everyone had been waiting and praying for…the day that was supposed to be a happy day—she passed away. That’s not how it was supposed to go. That’s not the ending we had all been praying for.
How could there possibly be any comfort?
When my sister called me with the awful news and with a request to pray for comfort for them, my heart broke. I’ve mentioned before how I’m such a person of empathy and how I hurt when others hurt. I just couldn’t even begin to imagine what my cousin must be feeling. Those poor boys who were excited with hope now have to grieve the loss of their mother and find a new normal in life without her. How could anyone even try to explain God’s plan in this situation. How could there possibly be any comfort for them?
I prayed for comfort for them. However, that word comfort just seemed so insufficient and fleeting. Then within the reading plan about when God doesn’t make sense, I saw comfort from a different angle. This viewpoint helped me a little, but it also helped me to better know how to pray for my cousin, his family, and those closest to this loss.
Here’s a quote from Day 1 of the reading plan, When God Doesn’t Make Sense:
“Since we’re talking about when God doesn’t make sense, let’s start with a word most of us think we understand: comfort. The history of the word “comfort” reveals the evolving way we see God’s footprint in our pain. The word is made from two Latin word parts, com-, which basically means “together with,” and fortis, which means “strong or strength.”
Later, the Latin word confortare came to mean, “to strengthen much.” Eventually, an Old French word, conforter, would add words like “solace” and “help” to the definition. In the 14th century, another French word, conforten, is defined as, “to cheer up, console.” Finally, by the 17th century, the English version of the word implies the sense of physical ease that we understand today.
We read comfort and we think of pillows, mashed potatoes, or maybe an old pair of worn-in pants. In about a millennia, this word went from meaning, “together-strength,” to meaning “pain-barrier.” We went from understanding God’s comfort as His company, to understanding it as His intervention.
When something terrible happens and we don’t see God intervene, we sometimes wonder whether He’s really there at all. But, we’re not alone. Before “comfort” word-morphed, King David experienced a time when God seemed inattentive. Read his letters to God and try to keep pace with his seemingly varying take on God’s place in his struggle.”[1]
Together-Strength
That term, together-strength, stood out to me. Then it kept coming back up in my spirit. That’s what they needed…that’s what I needed to pray for: Together-strength. They needed strength to survive this. Strength that comes from being together with God and together with others. That’s the true comfort they needed.
So I began to pray that they would tangibly feel God’s presence, His “togetherness”, and His company with them. I prayed for them to be surrounded by people who love them and strengthen them in their time of weakness and need. I prayed, “God, please give them comfort. Please give them together-strength.” Then, I repeated those words over and over, over the course of several days… “Together-strength, Lord. Send them together-strength.”
Comfort doesn’t come in isolation
This concept or idea that comfort is together-strength was reinforced for me this past week as well. My pastor did a wonderful message on Fatherhood (for Father’s Day) and relayed the ABCs of Fatherhood (meaning from our Heavenly Father). The “C” in the ABCs stood for “comfort”.
In his sermon, he stated that we receive comfort through messengers. He said, “God nurtures and develops us by the comfort of the Holy Spirit through messengers”.[2]
“It happened after this that Nahash the king of the people of Ammon died, and his son reigned in his place. … So David sent messengers to comfort him concerning his father.” 1 Chronicles 19:1-2 (NKJV)
“But that you also may know my affairs and how I am doing, Tychicus, a beloved brother and faithful minister in the Lord, will make all things known to you; whom I have sent to you for this very purpose, that you may know our affairs, and that he may comfort your hearts.” Ephesians 6:21-22 (NKJV)
“Therefore comfort one another with these words.” 1 Thessalonians 4:18 (NKJV)
He emphasized the idea that comfort doesn’t come in isolation but through togetherness, with God and with others.
Comfort from the Greek language
Earlier this week, I studied the word comfort even further, by looking up the original Greek word. In Greek the word for comfort is “parakaleo”.
Para: in close proximity to, beside or near
Kaleo: to call, to hail, to bid or call forth (as in calling someone’s name)
So put together it means to call near or beside you. This again reinforces the idea of togetherness or together-strength. In times of need or weakness, in times where we need comfort and strength, we need to call someone near or call someone to us. We need to gain strength by being together with another.
Where does comfort or together-strength come from?
It comes from God, our Heavenly Father, from Jesus, from the Holy Spirit, and from the church (from other people).
God is comforter.
“I, yes I, am the one who comforts you. So why are you afraid of mere humans, who wither like the grass and disappear?” Isaiah 51:12 (NLT)
“All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is our merciful Father and the source of all comfort.” 2 Corinthians 1:3 (NLT)
Jesus is comforter.
“Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.” Matthew 11:28-30
Holy Spirit is comforter.
“And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you forever;… But the Comforter, who is the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.” John 14:16, 26 (KJV2000)
We, the church, are comforter.
“He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When they are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us. For the more we suffer for Christ, the more God will shower us with his comfort through Christ. Even when we are weighed down with troubles, it is for your comfort and salvation! For when we ourselves are comforted, we will certainly comfort you. Then you can patiently endure the same things we suffer. We are confident that as you share in our sufferings, you will also share in the comfort God gives us.” 2 Corinthians 1:4-7 (NLT)
Take Some Practical Steps When You or Others Need Comfort:
- First, take note of this different perspective of comfort—one of together-strength and not just pain-barrier.
- Second, pray for together-strength, for you and for others. **Check out this Prayer for Strength and this list of scriptures about strength.
- Finally, seek and call out for (parakaleo) that “togetherness” from God, from Jesus, from the Holy Spirit, and from others. You are not alone, and you can be strong when you are together with others.
How does seeing comfort as “together-strength” give you a new or different perspective? Tell us about it by leaving a comment below OR share some encouragement for caregivers here.
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If you know anyone that could benefit from this, please pay it forward! Share this post via the sharing links below. “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.” 2 Corinthians 1:3-4 (NIV)
- “When God Doesn’t Make Sense-Day 1.” YouVersion Reading Plans, Life.Church, 15 June 2018, www.bible.com/reading-plans/2047-when-god-doesnt-make-sense. ↑
- George, Willie. “Father’s Day at Church on the Move.” 17 June 2018, Tulsa, OK, Church on the Move. ↑
