The Necessity of Mourning: Matthew 5.4

"Blessed [are] those who mourn, For they shall be comforted." - Matthew 5:4

The fruit of my life and my broken and sinful heart express the truth about my heart and mind.  There are many areas where I find that I disagree with God and do not like His leadership.

I am, in many ways, conformed to this world - I embrace a subtle and quiet friendship with this world and forget that this world is not my home or my friend.  How many areas in my life and heart do I find that I am in “enmity” with God, and often prefer the comfortable and the normal to the narrow and hard way of obedience that seems to have no immediate satisfaction? This world is passing away, John told us so long ago, and the lust of it; but He who does the will of God abides forever. (1 Jn. 2:17)

Lust (or ambition) is the vain pursuit of self-satisfaction, the selfish and endless desire for the externals in the hope that they will satiate the internals. They never do.  Thus we run and pursue and chase the things that we have set our heart upon with great expectation; we find ourselves disappointed often when we arrive at lust’s destination.  It is greatly disheartening for those who chase riches, honor, and power as a means of satisfying the craving within them to arrive at a place of rest only to find that the things they pursued only cause more internal and emotional disruption when they get them.

God’s ways, and the way of righteousness, are far superior to our ways.

The war to lay hold of this truth with conviction that permeates our soul intensifies greatly with the gift of mourning. One can only mourn in context to the measure and degree one possesses a vision for fullness. What does it look like when the righteousness of God is fully established in my heart, my life, my church, my city, my nation, and my generation? It is not enough to know our problem.  Awareness of our spiritual poverty is not even enough in regards to our inability to solve that problem. If we do not move into the grace of God to mourn we are candidates for depression, cynicism, or apathy.  Mourning spurs us to act on our problem.  Mourning provokes us to move towards God.  If we do not mourn, we cannot progress into maturity in Christ.