Tears in a Bottle

You have put my tears in your bottle. Are they not in your record? 

Psalm 56:8
In the movie The Shack, the main character, Mack, has lived his life filled with anger and grief. The healing process begins when he meets the Triune God in a cabin in the woods. Early in the meeting, he begins to cry, and the Holy Spirit wipes the tears from his eyes, places them in a bottle, and saves them. When Mack asks why, the Father answers, "We all have things we value enough to collect, don’t we? I collect tears."
Later, during a moment of profound healing, those same tears are poured from the bottle onto the grave of Mack's daughter to create a garden of beautiful flowers and a healthy tree. This film may not have been everybody's cup of tea, but it did remind us that our tears are remembered and that our grief can be healed. Because God cares, our own caring helps us see God's image in ourselves and others. Because God cares, we will be comforted, renewed, and guided on our path by all the love we've ever known.

Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.
 Matthew 5:4
Prayer after thinking about today's devotion:
God of all consolation, in your unending love and mercy for us you turn the darkness of death into the dawn of new life. Show compassion to your people in their sorrow. Be our refuge and our strength to lift us from the darkness of grief to the peace and light of your presence. Your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, by dying for us, conquered death and by rising again, restored life. May we then go forward eagerly to meet him, and after our life on earth be reunited with our brothers and sisters where every tear will be wiped away.
 from The Complete Book of Christian Prayer
✙ 
After your own thanksgivings & petitions, close with the Lord's Prayer.
Losung Losungen عیسی خداوند است Tageslosung Moravian Daily Texts Watchword عیسی مسیح Watchwords Lehrtext المسيح عيسى Lehrtexte يَسُوعُ رَبٌّ Teaching Text مسیحیت
Text selection ©2021 Evangelische Brüder-Unität. All scripture quotations from the New Revised Standard Version, unless otherwise noted.