When Sally Leroy hears her favorite music at Mass, she breaks down in tears. Most mornings, the Arizona native sobs silently in her prayer corner, pondering heartaches and family concerns or expressing appreciation for gifts received. Leroy, on the other hand, would not have it any other way.
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“I really believe the tears streaming down my cheeks are a gift,” Leroy added. “A buddy of mine told me that I was lucky to be able to cry because she couldn't.” When she stated she hadn't sobbed in years, I couldn't believe her. Tears dribble down my cheeks whenever this happens, and I'm grateful for it. Tears are something I adore. They are graces from our gracious Father, I know.”
The tears that Leroy sheds are referred to by Pope Francis as “the gift of tears.”
Grace of God
On April 2, 2013, the pope delivered a homily at Casa Santa Marta in which he discussed “He encouraged those present to weep as Mary Magdalene did at Christ's grave, citing “the gift of tears as a charism commonly attributed to the saints.”
“We've all experienced joy, misery, and sorrow in our lives; have we ever cried in the darkest hour? “Have we been given the gift of tears that prepare the eyes to behold the Lord?” he inquired. “We might also pray to God for the gift of tears. Weeping for everything: for what is good, for our sins, for graces, for joy itself…is a lovely grace that prepares us to encounter Jesus.”
Using the term “Pope Francis is referencing to sections in St. Ignatius' spiritual diary in which he recalls having an overpowering sensation of God's consolation, a word he has used many times since. While celebrating Mass, the saint was frequently moved to tears by the beauty of the worship and the profundity of God's love. His tears flowed from a deep and personal relationship with God. In his Spiritual Exercises, he wrote about these encounters.
“According to theologian and author Tim Muldoon, “the gift of tears is equally a sense of God's grace an overwhelming experience of being cared for and loved by the One who has created us and invited us to himself.” “It's a realization of the depth of that love that floods one's emotions and leaves one with no choice but to express that flood via tears. It's a hedonistic experience based on a deep, preconscious conviction of the Holy One's presence rather than intellect or emotion. It's a mystical experience in the sense that it's hidden or obscured from one's clear understanding (mystikos in Greek).”
What does the Bible say about tears?
They will be His people, and God, as their God, will be with them. He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and death, sadness, crying, and suffering will no longer exist, because the previous things have passed away.” “Behold, I make all things new,” exclaimed the One seated on the throne.
Why do tears come when I pray?
When tears well up in your eyes when you're conducting meditation or recitation, it's a sign from God. That indicates you've made contact with the God whose meditation or worship you're reciting, and your worship is effective. When you do puja when you are hungry to eat, you have become linked to your God in the same way. How can a person know which god or site of devotion to visit in India when there are so many temples and gods and goddesses?
What tears symbolize?
Acceptance is symbolized through tears. Acceptance of the truth, acceptance of a mistake, acceptance of reality, and acceptance of teaching are all examples of acceptance.
They come tumbling down. Streams of gratitude cascade down. They cascade down instinctively as we accept a truth, value, or idea so passionately that it completely transforms our lives.
They run down to express the “inexplicable” as well as the thrill of witnessing the “invaluable.” These golden droplets fall as we realize something so profound that it purifies our everlasting vision and offers us a new vision. Run down to convey our gratitude, thankfulness, and joy.
As we feel the ultimate senses of well-being, the resonance between the internal and outward, tears flow. Perhaps not happiness, but harmony, a balance of our emotions and thoughts.
Tears are symbolic of realization, acceptance, and acceptance. Acceptance of reality, as well as the acceptance of a new self. It is one of the most effective ways for living organisms to communicate the “inexplicable.”
What does crying do to your soul?
Emotional tears, in addition to being self-soothing, have been shown to release oxytocin and endorphins, according to research. These molecules make individuals happy and may help with physical and emotional suffering. Crying can assist relieve discomfort and produce a sense of well-being in this way.
Are tears prayers?
Have you ever found that all you can do when you go to pray is cry? It's not tears of joy or thanks that are shed, but tears of deep grief. When the anguish of brokenness is so deep that tears of sadness and grief are the only way to express prayer.
First and foremost, God knows our hearts; nevertheless, Satan does not want us to live triumphant lives. He wants to break our hearts and make us unhappy, and he isn't going down without a fight. Satan will go to any length to achieve his aim. “The thief comes only to steal, kill, and destroy,” John 10:10 states, “but God responds, “I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.”
6:11-12, Ephesians 6:11-12, Ephesians 6:11-12, Ephesians 6: Put on all of God's gear so that you can stand firm against the devil's plans. 12 Because we are fighting not against flesh and blood, but against rulers, authorities, powers of this dark world, and spiritual forces of evil in the higher realms.
As a result, we can see where the struggle is taking place and who we are up against. This is something we must remember in our darkest moments when we are struggling or have been hurt. Knowing this, however, does not make the situation any less painful; it simply provides a new viewpoint from which we can stand firm and claim victory in the middle of our sorrow, suffering, and tears. “33 These things I have told unto you, that in me ye might have peace,” says John 16:33. You will have tribulation in this world, but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.
Whatever we are going through, God has already conquered it, therefore we shall as well!
No weapon devised against me or you will prosper, thus we cannot allow the enemy to keep us from fulfilling God's purpose on our lives.
But what about those moments when all we have to offer Jesus is our tears and pain, and all we have to bring him are shards of our broken hearts?
That's what he wants us to do: bring him everything we have and put it at his feet on the alter. That is why he is required. God realizes that we are human, and he will be with us every step of the way. “The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit,” says Psalm 34:18.
He is near us, and we may have confidence in that because He keeps His promises.
Hannah is broken in 1 Samuel 1 because she is without a child. Eli mistook her for someone who had been drinking as she poured her heart out through sobs. Have you ever sobbed so hard that if someone saw you through the window, they would think you were insane? It might sometimes feel as if our lives have been sucked from us and we have nothing left to contribute. That's okay, though, since our tears matter to our Savior.
Another narrative can be found in Luke 7, about a broken woman who sobbed at Jesus' feet.
Her tears soaked His feet – how valuable were her tears to Him?
This woman was Mary, Lazarus' sister, as we learn in John 11.
Mary wept for her brother in that account, and her sobbing overwhelmed Him with sadness.
When Mary saw the empty tomb in John 20, she began to weep, and Jesus appeared in the midst of her anguish and sadness.
We cry sometimes because we don't know what to pray for. But we can be assured that even if that's all we have time to pray, it'll suffice.
There is also someone who prays for us. The Holy Spirit assists us in our weakness when we don't know what to pray for. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words, according to Romans 8:26-28. And whoever searches hearts knows what the Spirit's mind is, because the Spirit intercedes for the believers in accordance with God's desire. And we know that all things work together for good for those who love God, for those who are called according to his plan.” 8:26-28 (Rom. 8:26-28)
We can simply sit at his feet and pour out our emotions while waiting for him to respond. Our Heavenly Father values our tears much. 8 You keep account of all my sorrows, says Psalm 56:8.
All of my tears have been collected in your bottle.
Each one has been written down in your book.
To Him, every tear we shed is priceless. Our Heavenly Father does not miss a single tear. He is aware, aware, aware, aware, aware, aware, aware, aware, aware, aware, aware, aware, aware
What does God say about making a woman cry?
“Beware of making a woman cry; God keeps track of her tears.” A woman emerged from a man's ribs. Nor from his feet to be walked on, not from his head to be superior, but from his side to be equal, protected under the arm, and adored next to the heart.”
Why do we cry out to God?
I'm not asking if you've ever felt like wailing or wiping a tear from your cheek. I'm wondering whether you've ever been at the bottom of the barrel, at the point of absolute despair, when you didn't think things could get any worse and all you wanted to do was scream, groan, and shout out to God? Do you ever have the desire to cry? If you do, or should I say, when you do, I hope you go ahead and do it – I hope you cry out to God with everything you've got. Why? Because our God is the God of the crushed and brokenhearted. Because I believe our God desires for us to cry out to him in our most desperate times of need.