Good and Comfortable Words

“And the LORD answered the angel that talked with me [with] good words [and] comfortable words.” (Zec 1:13 AV)

This was the right thing to do!  Zechariah was discouraged.  More specifically, he was discouraged with the wicked being at peace and prospering at the expense of God’s people.  The context is encouragement in the midst of unsavory circumstances.  These circumstances were caused by Israel’s disobedience.  God had every right to refuse words of encouragement.  However, that is not what they needed.  Correction is only as effective as the mercy that follows.  Sometimes, even though we know that we caused our own problems, we need good and comfortable words.

Circumstances are often enough to remind us of the poor choices we have made.  Words of comfort and encouragement are the balance.  Serving as a chaplain in the health care industry afforded many opportunities to offer good and comfortable words regardless of the cause of a situation.  There was a woman whose son was dying of a drug overdose.  She was well aware of the cause of her son’s situation.  She didn’t need to be reminded.  What she needed was someone who had the faith she lacked.  There was a man whose life choices found him in need of a new heart.  Because of his lifestyle, the transplant team rejected his application.  He was facing certain death.  He didn’t need to be reminded that his poor life choices were the cause of his diagnosis.  He already knew that.  He needed prayer, counsel, and divine forgiveness.  There was the fellow who found himself in the wrong part of town.  A part that he didn’t need to be in.  Although his circumstances were not caused by sinful choices, lack of wisdom was.  He was beaten to near death.  He didn’t need to be instructed that he was in the wrong place.  He knew that.  He needed words of encouragement.  He needed to know that he would be alright and that justice would prevail.  The farmer who plants his crop and then suffers drought doesn’t need to be reminded that he will have financial hardship in his near future.  He knows that.  He needs support and empathy.  The individual who is laid off doesn’t need to be reminded that with his skill set and age, it will be near to impossible to find more work.  He knows that.  What he needs is someone who has faith to come alongside him and spur him on one day at a time.

A wise father will understand when his children need good and comfortable words because the opposite is not necessary.  He will see the downcast demeanor of his dear child and know that the circumstances of life have had their perfect work.  It is time for good and comfortable words.  It is time for Zechariah to give his people something to look forward to.  It is time that the prophet and people acknowledge that God is patient and longsuffering.  It is time for the man of God to let the people know that the sun will rise tomorrow.  The news of the coming Messiah is what they needed.  They didn’t need to be reminded of this immediate situation.  Rather, they needed good and comfortable words.  The word of God is filled with a balance of challenging or correcting words, and words of comfort and encouragement.  The Bible is not one-sided.  As God’s people, we need a balance.  We cannot recoil at the correction.  It is for our own good.  But at the same time, we cannot gloss over the good and comfortable words.  We need them, too.