* Say Nothing

What did the ocean say to the beach? Nothing, it just waved.

Some of the direst circumstances in our lives are the times when we need for others to do exactly that, say nothing. The most important thing they can do is just show up and be there for you. No words of encouragement or advice are necessary, just their physical presence. When people are hurting or confused, the last thing they need is for someone to judge them or tell them everything is going to be okay when their heart is breaking. They simply need us to be there for them and to love them.

In the book of Job in the Bible, Job lost his children, his crops, his livestock and his livelihood. He suffered illness and depression. When his friends showed up, they told him he must have done something to deserve all this heartache and gave him lots of advice on how to fix his problems. If you read his story, you know that he didn’t but the point is they were not helpful at all. Job’s response to them was that the wisest thing they could do was to just be quiet and grieve with him.

When you encounter someone who is going through a sickness like cancer, grieving the loss of a loved one, having a difficult personal time in their life, etc., please don’t ignore them because you don’t know what to say. The best thing you can do is just be there, love them and say nothing.

Blessings, Cindy J