Tears

 ~ Grace Gift ~
Tears

You Yourself have recorded my wanderings. Put my tears in Your bottle. Are they not in Your records?
Psalm 56:8

picture courtesy of http://www.bottleoftears.com/blog/

 Did you ever wonder why God would keep bottles of our tears?

As a mom of five, I would keep my kids' first-lost baby teeth, wrapped lovingly in a Kleenex and kept in an envelope and placed ever so lovingly in my jewelery box. I'm not sure why I did that other than I just wanted a little piece of their babyhood to keep with me forever. Sadly, I no longer have those precious little teeth but what about God? And what about our tears?

Does He REALLY keep our tears? And why?

http://www.bottleoftears.com/blog/

There was a Roman custom of bottling the tears of mourners as a memorial.
"Lachrymatories", or tear bottles, are where surviving relatives dropped their tears for their deceased family and friends. They were buried with their ashes, or in their urns.

Hundreds of small bottles dating back to 300 B.C. were found by Middle Eastern tomb raiders around 100 A.D. Theory was developed that they were part of the mourning ritual where mourners would cry into the bottles as a sign of respect. It was also believed that mourners would be paid to attend the funerals of the wealthy: filling tear bottles & wailing loudly to create dramatic impact. These items were rare in most burials, but common among the wealthy. 

 Tear Bottle - 1st c Roman -
"There is a sacredness in tears. They are not a mark of weakness but of power. They speak more eloquently than ten thousand tongues. They are the messengers of overwhelming grief, of deep contrition, of unspeakable love." - Washington Irving

 Wow, according to Washington Irving, as he so eloquently puts it, tears are messengers of overwhelming grief, of deep contrition and of unspeakable love. Interesting- and I will come back to this thought in a minute.

 O.k, so Roman tradition may have collected tears as a mourning process but still, what about God? Does He actually keep shelves of bottles of our tears and a big ole book filled with events that ever took place that made us cry?

 What is the significance of tears?

 And just what are tears, anyway?

Here is a link to some interesting discoveries about tears.
* I hope it's ok to use their link on my blog.
http://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/the-microscopic-structures-of-dried-human-tears-180947766/?no-ist

She bathed His feet with her warm tears as they dropped one by one unto His feet. Luke 7:37

 Jesus wept. John 11:35

 I am weary with my groaning; all night I make my bed swim; I drench my couch with my tears.
My eye wastes away because of grief, it grows old because of all my enemies.
Depart from me, all you workers of iniquity; for the LORD has heard the voice of my weeping.
The LORD has heard my supplication; The LORD will receive my prayer.
(Psalm 6:6-9)

 For You have delivered my soul from death, my eyes from tears, and my feet
from falling.
(Psalm 116:8)

 He will swallow up death forever, and the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from all faces.
(Isaiah 25:8)

 Refrain your voice from weeping, and your eyes from tears; for your work shall be rewarded, says the LORD, and they shall come back from the land of
the enemy.
Jeremiah 31:16

 And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away. (Revelation 21:4)

 And the ransomed of the LORD shall return, and come to Zion with singing, with everlasting joy on their heads. They shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.
(Isaiah 35:10)

 The Lamb who is in the midst of the throne will shepherd them and lead them to living fountains of waters. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.
(Revelation 7:17)

 He has seen you cry until you can’t cry any more.  He has witnessed your heartache. He has seen your tears when you have cried all alone in the dark, not sure of where to turn or where to go.  He has recorded each one in His book and collected your tears in the bottle He has just for you.  How precious you are to Him!
Let the tears flow and know that your God cares for you intimately and with great passion!

 Father, Thank you for seeing my tears and for the promise that I am never alone in my sorrow.  Amen.