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The Citizen, 2019-04-04, Page 16THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, APRIL 4, 2019. PAGE 17. By Pastor Gary van Leeuwen Blyth Christian Reformed Church The word “comfort” has been on my mind lately. I’ve been reading the first chapters of 2 Corinthians, and the word, “comfort,” dominates the first chapter. God gives us comfort, the apostle Paul says, and we comfort each other. As I read through the rest of 2 Corinthians, I began to grasp that when Paul says that God gives us comfort, His comfort does not always result in making us comfortable. In the same book, Paul talks at length about the struggles that he had as he travelled around the known world talking to people about his faith. He was beaten, stoned, imprisoned, thrown out of cities, and nearly torn apart by a mob. These situations did not make him comfortable. But yet, Paul talks about God’s comfort in spite of the fact that he was far from comfortable. Because Paul uses “comfort” so often, I asked myself what he meant. The roots of our English word help a little. Our word comes from Latin roots and is a compound word formed from two other words, “with” and “strength.” Our English words “fortress” and “fortitude” have the same Latin origins. Thus, “comfort” could be taken to mean “with strength.” When I went back to the original language of the Bible, Greek, I discovered that the Greek word, difficult to translate into English because we have no equivalent word, means something like, “called alongside.” Thus, when we think about what “comfort” means in 2 Corinthians, we should think of Paul being strengthened because someone is walking alongside of him. I think that we understand what this means here in the community. Not only do I find living here comfortable, but I also have comfort knowing what our community is like. I have seen over and over again that when someone is in need because of accident, illness, death or disaster, our community steps in and provides help and support. We give strength to the one in need by supporting them and walking alongside of them. They are comforted by our presence and our help. In their time of difficulty they may not be comfortable, but they are comforted. It is a tremendous blessing to live here. Even though I have not experienced serious difficulty in the time I’ve lived in Blyth, I am still comforted. I know the nature of our community, and I am confident that should I face difficulty, the community will be with me to support and strengthen me. My strength comes from the strength of the community, and for that I am thankful. I am comforted because I know what the people of the Blyth area are like. As the apostle Paul writes to the Corinthians, he talks about God comforting both him and them. That does not mean that God has promised to make them or us comfortable in every way. God is not a giant vending machine doling out what we think might make us comfortable. But He does comfort us. As Paul assures us of God’s comfort, he turns our attention to who God is. We will not be comforted by God’s presence in our lives unless we have a fairly good understanding of what He is capable of doing and what he will do. Just as I am comforted by knowing what my community is capable of and what they are willing to do, knowing who God is and what He promises also gives me strength. If we don’t know who God is and what He is willing to do, we will receive no comfort from Him. Many answers have been given to the question of who God is, but the one that best describes the God who is revealed to us in Scripture is given by a statement that is almost 500 years old: God is able to help us and strengthen us because of His being Almighty God. In other words, there is nothing that God cannot do. But that leaves us with the question: will God do it? And that the second part to the equation is this: God will care for us because, in Jesus Christ, He has become a loving Father. Even if we did not have good earthly fathers, I think that we can all picture what a good father is like. A father sees the needs of his children and He responds to their needs often before they ask. He will protect his children. He will teach his children. He will guide his children as they make decisions. A father may not always give his children everything they want or even what they perceive they need, and he may even allow his children to make mistakes that are costly to them. But he will always be there, ready and willing to walk beside them in every situation. We are taught in scripture that he will never leave us. We know this to be true of God because of what the Bible teaches. Perhaps this is best summarized by the well-known verse from John 3:16 where we read that “God loved the world so much that He sent His Son to this world that whoever believes in Him will not perish but have everlasting life.” This simply means that not only will God be with us in this life but even when we face death, we can be confident of His presence. For all who believe in Jesus there is the assurance that God cares for us. So then, comfort is not about becoming comfortable. It is about knowing that we have someone who is with us. Our communities comfort us simply because we know that they care and are willing to help out in our time of need. God may not make us comfortable, but we do know that He will always be with us. That gives me great comfort. THE CATHOLIC PARISHES OF NORTH HURON AND NORTH PERTH CORDIALLY INVITE YOU TO ATTEND HOLY MASS. OUR SUNDAY LITURGIES ARE AS FOLLOWS: Brussels: St. Ambrose Saturday 6:00 p.m. 17 Flora Street Wingham: Sacred Heart Sunday 9:00 a.m. 220 Carling Terrace Listowel: St. Joseph’s Sunday 11:00 a.m. 1025 Wallace Avenue N. huronchapel.com huronchapelkids.com huronchapelyouth.com 519-526-1131 ~ 119 John’s Ave., Auburn Sunday April 7 Pastor Phil Delsaut 9:30 a.m. Sunday School, 10:30 a.m. Worship Tuesdays 6:30 - 9 p.m. “Way of Jesus” training 6:30-8:30 p.m. Jr. & Sr. YOUTH (Gr. 7-12) Sat. Apr. 6, 7:30 p.m. MEN’S BREAKFAST GOOD FRIDAY Free Community Breakfast 8-10 a.m. at Blyth Memorial Hall Evangelical Missionary Church MELVILLE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH BRUSSELS SUNDAY, APRIL 7 Nursery care available 519-887-6687 Fridays 11:30 am - 1:00 pm ~ Soup & More 2 - a free community meal held in Melville’s basement, and made possible by the Brussels churches working together. Worship & Sunday School - 9:30 am (*New time) Coffee & Snacks following the service We invite you to join our church family in: OFFICE: 519-523-4224 Office Hours: Tuesday & Thursday ~ 9:30 am - 2:00 pm blythunited@tcc.on.ca Guest Speaker: Angie Lannin Accessible Sunday, April 7 Worship Service at 11:00 am Blyth United Church Facebook: Blyth and Brussels United Churches Youre Invited to come worship with us Sunday, April 7 at 10:30 a.m. & 6:00 p.m. 650 Alexander St. (former Brussels Public School) Sunday School for children 4 to 12 years of age at 9:30 a.m. Childcare provided for infants and preschoolers during the sermon. Coffee & cookies after the morning service. Wednesday Night Kids’ Club 6:45 pm - 8:15 pm (ages 5-12) For additional details please contact Pastor Andrew Versteeg 519.887.8621 Steve Klumpenhower 519.292.0965 Rick Packer 519.527.0173 Hwy. 4, Blyth www.blythcrc.ca 519-523-4743 Minister: Pastor Gary van Leeuwen BLYTH CHRISTIAN REFORMED CHURCH SUNDAYS Morning Service 10:00 am Evening Service 7:30 pm You’re Invited To Join Us In Worship BRUSSELS United Church Worship and Sunday School Sunday, April 7 at 9:30 am Worship leader, Angie Lannin All are Welcome The Regional Ministry of Hope BLYTH BRUSSELS Trinity St. John’s 9:15 am 11:15 am COME WORSHIP WITH US! Rev. JoAnn Todd, Rector 519-357-7781 email: revjoann@hurontel.on.ca The­Regional­Ministry­of­ Hope St. Paul’s Trinity WINGHAM 11:15 am These Anglican Churches Welcome You From the Minister’s Study Look to God for comfort: van Leeuwen