God Speaks to Us through the Tears

Yesterday we reflected on tears. We’ll continue on that theme today.

The great American writer Frederick Buechner once said that whenever you find tears in your eyes, you should pay close attention. Tears, he suggests, are not only windows into the secret places of our own hearts — they are often moments when God is speaking, summoning us toward what comes next.

That is a profound thought. Our tears may reveal what we truly love. They may uncover what we fear. They may expose what we have ignored for too long. And sometimes, they may be God’s gentle nudge — or holy disruption — redirecting our steps.

At the end of Scripture, in the Book of Revelation, we are given a promise: one day God will wipe every tear from our eyes. Mourning and crying and pain will be no more. That is our hope.

Reflecting on this passage, Pastor Leonard Sweet wrote, “Until that day, it is our job, our joy, to wipe the eyes of those who weep, especially those who cannot wipe the tears away for themselves. And it is our job, our joy, to help those who are too hungry, too thirsty, too dehydrated for tears to form in their own eyes.”

So perhaps tears are both teachers and commissions. They teach us where our hearts are tender. And they send us toward those whose tears need tending.

May we not rush past them — our own or others’. May we listen for the voice of God within them. And may we follow where that voice leads.

Let us pray: Gracious God, you promise comfort to those who mourn. Meet us in our tears, and make us attentive to what they reveal. Open our eyes to the tears of others, and give us tender courage to respond. Comfort us, challenge us, and guide us; through Christ our Lord. Amen.