My dad taught me never to cry in front of people. As men, we shouldn’t let our emotions show in front of others. He wasn’t ever big on teaching us many principles, but for whatever reason, he was very adamant about that one. For those who know me now, I’m an emotional wreck. I’ll cry for whatever. I recently told my Community Group (CG) how, one time, I started breaking down while I was watching my dad eat dinner. (It’s a long story.)
Jesus wept.
— John 11:35
John 11:35 does so much for me, for so many different reasons. It’s a big jump from being taught never to show emotion in public to finding out that my good Father wept in front of a crowd. In that moment, I connected with Jesus on an emotional level. I have had so much pain in my life — moments of crying in bed because I convinced myself I was worthless, and that death was my only option — but I am not alone in the pain. I am not alone in the tears. I get so much comfort knowing that God the Creator, holier than my little mind can comprehend, will pause and weep with me.
It’s so easy to confine yourself, distance yourself and convince yourself that you’re alone. But the same Savior that took a moment to weep with the ones he loved, right before he was about to resurrect the very one they were weeping over, is the same one with you in your moments of pain. He weeps with you.