The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit. — Psalm 34:18, NLT
He wasn’t the strongest kid in the pack that night. Quiet and shy, the other boys held no reservation when it came to approaching the clown and asking for the coolest of cool handouts, the animal shaped balloons the hired clown was making. Everything changed, however, when the little brother of the shy kid said to the guy with the red nose and supersized shoes, “Hey, my brother is crying.” The rent-a-clown stopped everything in the bustling, boisterous scene around him. He scanned for and met the quiet big brother eye to eye. The look in the clown’s eyes made it clear to the one with tears in his eyes that everything would be made okay.
When someone cries, Psalm 34:18 rings true. The verse reads, “The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.”
God’s work is in miracles, not in honking horns, neckties that squirt water, or balloon-shaped dogs, dolphins or ducks. In bustling, boisterous scenes, shockingly silent moments, and everything in between, God does attends to all, yes. If one is hurting or tearful, however, all stops. God is RIGHT there. His heart, His presence, and His healing extend and surround, even if the one in tears does not feel this.
I won’t forget the look the clown gave the boy in tears because I was the boy. Even if or when we cannot feel it, let’s not forget in our tears that God doesn’t clown around when it comes to loving and comforting us.
PRAYER: Lord, You promise that someday there will be no more tears. Until then, hold ours. Amen.