Day 24 — Rejoice and Weep

“Rejoice with those who rejoice; weep with those who weep.”

— Romans 12:15 (BSB)

This verse sounds simple. But it’s actually one of the hardest things to do.

Rejoice with those who rejoice. When something good happens to someone else, be happy with them!

That sounds easy, until your friend wins the award you wanted. Or gets picked for the team when you didn’t. Or gets the new phone you’ve been asking for. Then it’s not so easy, is it? Instead of rejoicing, we feel jealous. We might even hope something goes wrong for them.

Rejoicing with others means celebrating their good news as if it were your own. It means pushing jealousy aside and saying, “That’s amazing! I’m so happy for you!” and meaning it.

Weep with those who weep. When someone is sad, be sad with them.

That sounds easy too. But often, when people are sad, we don’t know what to do. So we avoid them. Or we try to fix it too fast: “Cheer up! It’s not that bad!” Or we change the subject.

In the book of Job, Job lost almost everything: his children, his health and his wealth. When his three friends heard about it, they came to comfort him. They were so shocked by his suffering that they sat with him on the ground for seven days and seven nights, and no one said a word, because they saw how great his pain was (Job 2:13).

That was the best thing Job’s friends did! (Later, when they started talking, they said a lot of unhelpful things.) Sometimes the best thing you can do for a sad friend is not to talk at all. Just be there. Sit with them. Let them cry.

Remember, Jesus wept with Mary and Martha. He didn’t rush their sadness. He entered into it.

Both of these, rejoicing and weeping with others, come from the same place: love that thinks about other people more than yourself. When you love someone, their joys become your joys, and their sorrows become your sorrows.

Think about it: Which is harder for you: rejoicing with others when good things happen to them, or weeping with others when they’re sad?

Try this: Today, celebrate someone’s good news, no matter how small. And if you know someone who is sad, just be with them.

Dear God, help me rejoice with people who are happy, without being jealous. And help me weep with people who are sad, without rushing them or avoiding them. Give me a heart that loves others the way Jesus does. In His name, Amen.