“Just…there”

It occurred to Pooh and Piglet that they hadn’t heard from Eeyore for several days, so they put on their hats and coats and warm little boots and trotted across the Hundred Acre Wood to Eeyore’s small stick house.

Inside the house was Eeyore.

“Hello Eeyore,” said Pooh.

“Hello Eeyore,” said Piglet.

“Hello Pooh, Hello Piglet,” said Eeyore, in a glum-sounding voice.

“We thought we’d check in on you,” said Pooh, “because we hadn’t heard from you lately, and just wanted to know if you were okay.”

Eeyore was silent for a moment. “Am I okay? Well, I don’t know to be honest. Are any of us really okay? That’s what I ask myself. All I can tell you Pooh and Piglet is that right now I feel rather sad, and alone, and not much fun to be around, which is why I haven’t bothered you. You wouldn’t want to waste your time hanging out with someone who is sad and alone, and not much fun to be around, now would you?”

Pooh looked at Piglet. Piglet looked at Pooh. Then they both sat down, one on either side of Eeyore in his little stick house.

Eeyore looked at them in surprise…”What are you doing?”

“We’re sitting here with you Eeyore,” said Pooh.

“Because we are your friends,” said Piglet. “And true friends don’t care if someone is feeling sad, or lonely, or not much fun to be around. True friends are there for you anyway. And so here we are.”

“Oh,” said Eeyore. “Oh.”

And so the three of them sat there in silence, and while Pooh and Piglet said nothing at all, somehow, almost imperceptibly, Eeyore started to feel just a tiny bit better because Pooh and Piglet were there. No more, no less. Just…there

Take a minute to learn about ministering from Amanda Riggins in this short video clip and then continue reading below:

As Pooh, Piglet, and Amanda have shown us, ministering is about moving your feet. True disciples of Jesus Christ are willing to bear one another’s burdens. They are willing to mourn with those who mourn. They are willing to comfort those in need of comfort.

Implied in these admonitions are two things: First, that we are aware of those in need, that we are in their lives and tuned in; and second, that we are with them…physically. That we give freely of our time to let them know that they are not alone and that we love them. It is the difference between feeling for them and feeling with them.

For many who are in need, it will not be obvious. For some, their need is the result of problems that have become beyond their control, whether caused by an external event such as illness, or loss, or a private, internal one, such as depression, anxiety, or addiction. Regardless of the reason, our role is to be there for them so that they don’t have to go through their trial alone.

Shared pain is the most powerful bonding agent in time and eternity. People don’t really expect us to solve their problems, but they need our kindness, our awareness, and our quiet shoulder to lean on. Our presence…