Thoughts for the Day

Then Jesus began to speak, and taught them, saying:

'Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
'Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.
'Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.
'Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.
'Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy.
'Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.
'Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.
'Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

(Church in Wales Lectionary, New Revised Standard Version)

Thoughts

We looked at the Beatitudes in August this year (click on 'The Beatitudes' above), and in particular at the first of these: 'Blessed are the poor in spirit'. Today, though we look at the next of 'The Beatitudes' - that is, the teaching that Jesus gave to the crowds of people in Galilee:

'Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted': In these last two years this seems a rather obvious statement. When we lose loved ones and mourn their passing, people do comfort us. But this isn't what Jesus means, just as he didn't say 'Blessed are the poor', but 'Blessed are the poor in spirit.', so there is a slight twist to what we expect.

'Blessed are those who mourn' refers to the time when we are sorrowful for our sin - those times when we feel really upset because we never seem to improve, but go on making the same mistakes over and over again; and those times when we admit our sin but know perfectly well we shall commit it again tomorrow. At such times we can feel we are becoming separated from God. However, if we really mourn our separation, it can lead to being truly sorry before God, and that in turn can lead to changes in our life, and ultimately to new life with God.

Heavenly Father,
sometimes when we say "sorry",
the words come out with no thought or feeling,
since we know we shall commit these sins again tomorrow.
Help us to mourn the fact that we constantly sin,
and in turn lead us to make changes to our life,
that will draw us closer to Your comforting arms.
Amen.