Monday, January 10, 2011

Empathy

In those days Mary arose and went with haste to the hill country. . .

Luke 1:39

In the beginning, Mary was a contemplative. But when her conversation with Gabriel sank in and her “condition” became reality, she fled to the only person who would understand. Elizabeth was familiar with the outcome of a Gabriel visit and for six months she had been living with her growing body. No one could have possibly helped Mary understand what lay ahead like Elizabeth.

Difficult times demand that I find empathetic companions. Finding someone who is experiencing or has experienced a similar situation is to discover hope. Knowing that I’m not alone allows me to see the way out where once I saw only barriers.

God promises that with every difficulty he allows a way out is also on the horizon. Mary’s world wasn’t turned upside down without God providing someone who could be in the experience with her. Of course, after Mary’s three month stay in the hill country Elizabeth gives birth and Mary is once again left alone. But the companionship she shared during those three months must have helped her through the ensuing months of aloneness.

With Gabriel gone and Mary not able to prove his visit she needed at least one person who could understand. God provided just what she needed when she needed it.

Thank you God for not leaving me helpless when difficulties come.
Help me to see the horizon and the help you always provide.
Amen

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