Tears as Sacrament
"Tears are the sacrament of change."
This quote piqued my curiosity as I listened to it being spoken to a peer. What does this mean? How can it nourish our souls? Here is my attempt to understanding this quote.
Sacrament is defined by Dictionary.com as "a visible sign of an inward grace; of sacred character or mysterious significance." Re-stated:
"Tears are the visible sign of an inward grace, sacred in character, holding mysterious significance of change."
Many of us do not see tears as good, but as bad, weak, unnecessary, too much is not good, etc. Tears do not have a positive connotation yet according to this quote there is deep significance to them. They are indicators of something. They alert us to something going on deep within. Something mysterious and unknown. Something that is sacred and gracious. Have you ever thought of tears as gracious?
We do not know what to do with tears. We do not know what to do with other's tears or even our own. So maybe we do not necessary see tears as "bad" at the core, but as intimidating or even frightening. We do not know what to do with them.
According to this quote it seems that we are not necessarily to do something with them but to receive them and wait. Have you ever thought of receiving tears?
What would it look like to receive them and wait with them? To receive them means to allow time for them. To receive them means to trust God with them. To wait means to let them have their effect, whatever that might be. Even after our tears are dried up God continues to work his inward grace in us.
The last word - change. Change is not always fun but it can be good. These tears are coming forth as a gracious gift to be received, sacred and mysterious as a sign of change. Something is going on internally - God is graciously and mysteriously changing you. Who knows why? It may be because of a change that has happened in your life. Maybe it is a change that is happening internally. The variety of change is limitless and God is there in the change, with his gracious love.
"Tears are the sacrament of change."
My prayer is that we would live with the perspective that God is mysteriously and graciously in our tears and that we would wait on him.
This quote piqued my curiosity as I listened to it being spoken to a peer. What does this mean? How can it nourish our souls? Here is my attempt to understanding this quote.
Sacrament is defined by Dictionary.com as "a visible sign of an inward grace; of sacred character or mysterious significance." Re-stated:
"Tears are the visible sign of an inward grace, sacred in character, holding mysterious significance of change."
Many of us do not see tears as good, but as bad, weak, unnecessary, too much is not good, etc. Tears do not have a positive connotation yet according to this quote there is deep significance to them. They are indicators of something. They alert us to something going on deep within. Something mysterious and unknown. Something that is sacred and gracious. Have you ever thought of tears as gracious?
We do not know what to do with tears. We do not know what to do with other's tears or even our own. So maybe we do not necessary see tears as "bad" at the core, but as intimidating or even frightening. We do not know what to do with them.
According to this quote it seems that we are not necessarily to do something with them but to receive them and wait. Have you ever thought of receiving tears?
What would it look like to receive them and wait with them? To receive them means to allow time for them. To receive them means to trust God with them. To wait means to let them have their effect, whatever that might be. Even after our tears are dried up God continues to work his inward grace in us.
The last word - change. Change is not always fun but it can be good. These tears are coming forth as a gracious gift to be received, sacred and mysterious as a sign of change. Something is going on internally - God is graciously and mysteriously changing you. Who knows why? It may be because of a change that has happened in your life. Maybe it is a change that is happening internally. The variety of change is limitless and God is there in the change, with his gracious love.
"Tears are the sacrament of change."
My prayer is that we would live with the perspective that God is mysteriously and graciously in our tears and that we would wait on him.
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