by Timothy Shepard
Look at it this way!
Jesus Wept
Matthew 11:35
"Jesus wept." I think I have mentioned before that this scripture verse was one of the scripture readings I memorized as a middle schooler. It is the shortest scripture verse that I and my chums in Sunday School could find when given the assignment of scripture memorization. At the time, it was easy to memorize, but actually difficult to wrap my head around. Jesus' boohooing did not fit my picture of the man raised by a carpenter who was destined to save the world. The significance of Jesus' modeling healthy human behavior hardly sank in until many decades later.
Jesus wept because he learned that his friend Lazarus had died. Lazareth had already been dead for several days, and his lifeless body was already laid in a cave decomposing. After Jesus wept, he visited the cave where Lazarus' decaying body lay and shouted, "Come out". And out
came Lazarus.
Jesus was not the only man to weep in the Bible. David wept when he learned of his son's death. (2 Samuel 18:33) "The King was deeply moved and went up to the chamber over the gate and wept, and as he went, he wailed "O my son Absalom. Would I had died instead of you, O Absalom, my son, my son". The King was not whimpering, the King was bawling!
There is much research and scientific evidence about the health benefits of crying. It helps with breathing and gastrointestinal issues. It releases endorphins. It has a physiological benefit. Crying restores mental clarity, relieves stress and anxiety, improves emotional equilibrium, etc.. Scientists tell us that humans produce three kinds of tears: the most common are those that lubricate the eye, the second type are produced in physically harsher conditions, and protect the eyes from high wind, sand, or other unusual elements. The third are emotional tears. These tears are a completely different chemical makeup which includes a type of hormone produced from stress. These tears release unhealthy emotional toxin burdening our bodies. Tears are cathartic.
The pandemic is teaching me the wisdom of weeping. The frustration, the uncertainty, the anxiety is real. The suffering that this disease wreaks on its victims is frightening and undeniable. Thank God that we continue to learn about this novel coronavirus. I pray every day for our scientists who research, study, develop, observe. They know more than I do. I lament the disrespect they are publicly receiving. In the slow-moving meantime, emotional turmoil builds, accumulates, takes hold of our guts. We have all suffered from isolation, creating an alternative new norm, waiting, waiting, waiting, and not knowing. As we lose patience, mental illness is on the rise. Crying is a remedy. Laughing, dancing, and singing are another which should all be explored. I admit finally weeping at church one Wednesday afternoon in September when the building was dark and completely empty, normally buzzing with children's choirs, suppers, fellowships, Chancel Choir, and adult studies. It was healing and the beginning of my dealing with this pandemic reality. "Blessed are the poor in spirit... Blessed are those who mourn" There is a lesson in that very short scripture I memorized decades ago, "Jesus wept."
Let's face it, we curb crying. Keep a stiff upper lip, chin up, "real men don't cry". We want joy and optimism. Like many other guys, I had very few male role models demonstrating this healthy human expression. I witnessed my father crying one time, his brother had died. Perhaps there were other times, he was compelled to keep it private. Americans for some crazy reason do not like their boys to cry or anyone for that matter. And so we are taught to suppress our emotional sludge, to our own peril. Are tears part of the process of dying to self in order to find new life? Jesus shows us that it is ok to weep.
I have wondered recently if crying is a form of prayer. It certainly meets the test of authentic communication. And just who are we talking to when we weep? It takes vulnerability to allow yourself such a space to sob. Isn't this space where Jesus heals, restores, and resurrects the wounded spirit? Isn't that what we do when we pray, to plead with God to heal, restore, resurrect, and reconcile?
Everyone cries, some more easily than others, many embarrassed or shamed by it. Most like King David and my father retreat to their private chamber. It is a lucky thing if you have someone who will wrap their arms around you in love and not have to say anything but that it's ok. Isn't that being Christ to one another?
I really am not encouraging a pity party here. I am suggesting that tears can be the ticket to joy. It's wise and healthy to cry. Sometimes we need to let go to let God. After all, Jesus wept.
Thoughts or Comments?