What God would probably most love for Christmas is the tears of His people.

In LA, wild fires are raging, burning treasures memories and holiday hopes.  Across the globe, the fires of tension in Bethlehem, the city of our Savior’s birth have been reignited.

The same eyes that wept over the city of Jerusalem thousands of years ago ache to have us weep over the condition of our world, beginning in our own homes and hearts.

Oh, Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings and you were not willing! Matthew 23:37.

The wisdom of the wisest man, Solomon, tells us that for everything there is a season and a time. This is the time for tears. There will come a day when every tear will be wiped away from every year, but that time is not yet.

Simon Blocker powerfully captures this sentiment in his book Personality through Prayer. 

“A good case can be made out for it that perhaps the most immediate and imperative need of the Christian church right now is a flood of tears, a veritable deluge of tears for the sins and sorrows of the world…The tearlessness of average Christians in face of prevailing degeneracy partakes of the very blindness and insensitiveness to moral reality which marks the conscienceless conduct of contemporary society. ‘God give us tears,’ is a prayer that may well have justified claim to priority.”

God, give us tears. A scary prayer, but one that would honor our Father as much as it would disrupt our comfort.

When God promised to remove our calloused hearts of stone and gives us hearts of flesh, He gave us the gift of the capacity to feel both the heights of joy and the depths of despair. This gift of feeling is not meant to be wasted only upon ourselves.

Our tears show us where our treasures lie.  I cry when I am tired, I cry when I overwhelmed by my to-do list, I cry when I fail. I cry when things don’t happen as I planned or expected. I cry even at the slightest perception of pain for my children. These are my treasures.

My trail of tears betrays me, as does my lack of tears. I hate to admit it, but until this morning, I have not watched the news in quite some time. Part of not watching the news is wisdom in leading an easily overwhelmed heart; however, part of not watching the news is not wanting to experience discomfort, not wanting to cry the tears that God would borrow my eyes to cry over His world.

I am often so busy with my own schedule, so myopic about my own life, that my tear ducts are not available to the King of Kings. I long to be so connected and in tune with Christ, so consistently walking by the Spirit, that I cry tears that He would cry were He still walking this spinning globe.

This week, I have been asking God to give me tears. It is working. As I write this, my heart is heavy beyond words for the devastation of peace workers in Jerusalem who have worked tirelessly for decades to nurture peacemaking relationships among Palestinians and Israelis who are fearful of one another after centuries of mutual hatred. One announcement is enough to reignite the conflicts to a levels rivaling the California wildfires.

If you are looking for a small way to invest your tears into the peacemaking process, consider purchasing a peace doll made collectively by Palestinian and Israeli women in Jerusalem through the Preemptive Love Coalition. The dolls are sold out, but there are plenty of other items in their shop! https://preemptivelove.shop/collections/refugee-made

The beauty of the diversity of the body of Christ is that each of us have different causes and cares that tap into the aquifer of tears in our souls. You may not cry over the wildfires or the peace of a people that hangs in the threads of a complex conflict; but if you are in Christ, He longs to cry tears through your eyes. And now is the time for tears, because soon and very soon, Our King will come again and the time for tears will forever be closed. Let us learn to spend them wisely.

Oh, God, give us tears. Amen.