Day 19/365- Job 2:13

Then they sat on the ground with him for seven days and nights. No one said a word to Job, for they saw that his suffering was too great for words. (Job 2:13 NLT)

Sometimes words are inadequate. There are times in our lives when we have no words. There are times in our lives when the words of others offer no sense of peace. There are sometimes just no words.

Job is experiencing one of those times. He has lost everything. Everything. He lost his family, possessions, even his own health. He even lost the support of his wife. His wife tell him to "curse God & die." Those words definitely didn't help.

Job's friend spend most of the book (chapters & chapters) trying to convince Job that he is reaping what he has sown. They try to argue as to why all of this is happening to him. Their arguments are sometimes sounds & sometimes not & none of them help Job. The most help they give is when they first see him. They do nothing. They say nothing. They just sit with Job. They sit with him while he grieves.

When people we know are hurting they don't need words. They don't need convincing talk. They don't need us to offer them something that we have to say. How many times though do we feel the need to say something? We may have the most to offer by saying nothing at all. Sometimes people's greatest need is just for someone to be there. When people are hurting they just need flesh & blood. They just need our presence.

Being there for someone who is hurting is very powerful. People don't remember funeral messages. They don't remember what people said in the visitation line. They often remember however, who was there for them.