A Happy Healthy Church: Devotions From Time of Grace MinistrySample

WORSHIP: SHARE

Ever feel like you're going through life with such a heavy weight on your back that you can't stand up straight? But have you also experienced the relief that comes when God sends help? I hope you remember to thank God when he sends that blessed relief. But there's something else you need to do.

When you are standing up straighter, you have a chance to pass on the hope you have to the sufferers and stragglers and strugglers around you. But you can't do that if your spirituality is bottled up into a silent, personal thing. We were built for interaction with one another. We're made to be puzzle pieces--beautiful, colorful, with only part of the overall divine design.

The grand picture only comes together when you are put together with other people. "Praise be to 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 have received from God" (2 Corinthians 1:3,4).

So open up a little, okay? Tell your personal story of God's rescue to the people around you who are scraping by. Share your hope, share your comfort, share your joy. When you do that, you'll notice they'll be standing a little straighter too.