WEEK TWENTY-FIVE: HOW DOES GOD FEEL ABOUT YOU?

John 11:35 is the shortest verse of the Bible but one of the most profound for those of us who want to know Him more deeply and intimately. It says simply, “Jesus wept.”

We gain deep and revealing insight into the heart of Jesus from this passage. Because He knows what it is to shed tears from a broken heart, He understands our tears .

And your tears are noted individually. Jesus keeps account of them and does not forget or lose track of your suffering through the years. Hundreds of years before this touching scene, a psalmist wrote:

 8 You have kept count of my tossings;
    put my tears in your bottle.
    Are they not in your book? (Psalm 56:8)

Did you know that your tears are that precious to Him? That He feels your losses and your pain? Jesus came to earth and experienced human pain so He could not just sympathize but empathize. Most scholars believed Jesus lost His father at a young age. He knew grief. In fact, Isaiah 53:3-4 foretells the coming of Jesus and describes Him this way:

“He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted.”

You have never had a friend or family member who so deeply feels your pain and understands firsthand any sense of loss you may be experiencing.

But not all of your life is about loss and pain, and not all of the Lord’s feelings about you are sympathy and consolation. He also feels joy beyond description at the thought of you. It is literally inexpressible as I am told that the English language does not have adequate words to translate how God feels about you. The second half of Zephaniah 3:17 says it best:

… he will rejoice over you with gladness;
    he will quiet you by his love;
he will exult over you with loud singing.

The words “rejoice over you with gladness” is the phrase that has no exact translation into English. The NASB says “exult over you.” The NIV says “take great delight in you.” I am told that the actual Hebrew words express an outburst of such joy and exultation that it is more like a dance and a song, even a leap of joy. God is so delighted at the thought of you that He dances over you with joy and singing. This is the same God who knows every sin you have ever committed, and He loves you this much anyway. This is amazing love that the world can’t give nor take away, no matter what happens.

Please take just a moment to sit with God to let Him rejoice over you. Then express your feelings to Him. He loves hearing from His children about their feelings, especially their feelings toward Him. And be honest. You may be suffering from some feelings that are not delightful. He wants to hear it all from your heart to His. He will still delight in you, and if there are tears, He will be moved by them and comfort you. Just talk to Him. Form or format are not important to Him. Eyes opened or closed, have a conversation with God and see what happens in the days to come.