Leaning on One Another

Scripture

^{Job 2:11-13
11} Now when Job’s three friends heard of all these troubles that had come upon him, each of them set out from his home—Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite, and Zophar the Naamathite. They met together to go and console and comfort him. ¹² When they saw him from a distance, they did not recognize him, and they raised their voices and wept aloud; they tore their robes and threw dust in the air upon their heads. ¹³ They sat with him on the ground seven days and seven nights, and no one spoke a word to him, for they saw that his suffering was very great.  (NRSV)

Devotion

 This Part 2 of our 3 part look at the book of Job.  In 2017, I spent my summer learning how to provide spiritual care and counseling in a hospital setting.  For 10 weeks, the staff chaplains at a major area hospital mentored us as we took coursework, reflected on our own reactions to grief and trauma, and provided pastoral care for patients and their families.   This physically and emotionally exhausting experience life changing for the people who complete the program.  One of the lessons it brings home is the importance of just being present in times of distress.

At the hospital I was placed in, chaplains were expected to regularly check in on eve.  On top of that, we were immediately paged every time there was a death, a trauma involving a child, or a patient/family experiencing major distress.  One chaplain was even the go-to person for nurses who were struggling.  Finally, we were expected to support each other as we experienced all the highs and lows of hospital ministry.  It was our job to comfort and console anyone and everyone whose suffering and celebrate with all those who received good news.

Eliphaz, Bildad, and Zophar understood the importance of being there for people.  In Job's time, showing up included certain rituals like wailing, tearing your clothes, sitting in the dirt.  When Job's friends heard that he has lost everything (his wealth, his children, and now his health), they dropped what they were doing and went to help him mourn.   They observed all the rituals that let Job know they were grieving with him and praying to God on his behalf.  Then, they simply sat with him silence for 7 whole days.  Their presence let Job lean on them in his pain.

We may not pour dust on our heads or tear or clothes any more, but we have our own ways of letting people know that we are there for people to lean on in times of trouble.  We "show up" in prayer shawls and phone calls and sympathy cards.  We gathering for viewings and funerals; if we cannot physically be there we find other ways of letting families know we care.  Being present with people can even take the form of a quiet walk or sitting in silence with someone.


Many of us are grieving for something right now.  Whether we mourn the loss of loved ones, miss certain routines, or find some of the connections we rely upon fraying under the strain of social distancing, life is hard.  That is why it is important that we keep being there for one another.  If we know that someone is struggling, we need to be like Job's friends and find a way to let them know we are there for them.  We may not feel like we are doing much; in fact, we may say almost nothing.  What the person will remember is that we were there for them.  When we find ways to "show up" for folks and invite them to lean on us, we reflect the presence of our always faithful and loving God.

We may doubt that our presence makes much of a difference, but it does.  During my summer as a hospital chaplain, I often hated that I couldn't do much more than hold someone's hand or lift up a prayer.  Then, a grieving family would send us a thank you note for sitting with them and holding their uncle's hand.  Or a mother would come running to share the news that her baby was finally getting to go home.  In one case, a couple sobbed about my butterfly necklace reminded them that their daughter (who was my age and loved butterflies) was going to a better place. In those moments, I learned that I didn't need to have all the answers or work a miracle in order to be there for someone.  All I had to do was show up and let people know I cared.  God would do the rest.

As we travel through the coming days, let us remember that we can maintain a safe physical distance from people while still "showing up" for those in need of comfort.  Whether we send a prayer shawl or silently wave at someone through a window, we can still invite people to lean on us.  When it is our turn to need support, we can trust that someone will show up and invite us to lean on them.  That, beloved, is just one of the many ways that God's love is reflected in the world.  In big ways and small, the Holy Spirit works through us to remind people that we are not alone.  The more we show up for one another, the more the Good News of God's love spreads.

Prayer

Father, our world is weighed down with grief and anxiety.  Whenever the load feels like to much for someone to be bear, heap us be there for one another.  Inspire us to "show up" and be present with those who need support.   Bring us others who will do the same for us.  God, we trust that with your help, we will never truly face anything on our own.