LISTEN ONLINEI was choked up that Saturday evening when I had to say goodbye to my daughters. I didn’t think it would be so hard, empty nesting a second time round. After all, the girls had previously been away at university and had now secured jobs they really wanted. But leaving them in a distant town and heading home to a house lacking their life—and their mess—touched me deeply.
Jesus too was overcome with emotion the day he went to visit Martha and Mary in Bethany. He already knew that the Father was going to do an amazing miracle through Him (see John 11:4, 11) and raise His friend, Lazarus, from the dead (vv. 33-34). He had thus deliberately delayed when Lazarus’ sisters asked Him to come (v. 6). But when he arrived He felt their pain deeply, being intensely affected by their grief. “Jesus wept” (v. 35 ) may be the shortest verse in the Bible but is one of the most profound. Jesus wasn’t being weak when He cried; He was expressing His humanity and love, just as He demonstrated His divinity and power when He raised Lazarus.
To stand silently with someone in pain and shed tears can be a greater act of love than uttering many words, as my daughters knew from my wet eyes that evening. What consolation to know that God also draws alongside us, empathising with us in our sorrows.