When I Am Sad

God Loves Me  ·  Psalm 34:18; John 11:35

God is close when I'm sad.

Have you ever felt really sad? Maybe you cried? Crying is okay. It's how our hearts let out the big feelings. Today we hear something beautiful: God doesn't stay far away when we are sad. He comes closer.

The Bible says: 'The Lord is close to the brokenhearted. He saves those whose hearts have been crushed.'

Brokenhearted means your heart feels like it's in pieces. Something hurts so much you don't know what to do.

Maybe a friend said something mean. Maybe a pet got sick. Maybe you feel lonely. Maybe you just feel sad and you don't even know why.

Those are brokenhearted moments.

And the Bible says: in those moments, God comes closer.

Not farther. Closer.

Remember when we heard about Jesus and His friend Lazarus? When Jesus arrived and everyone was crying, Jesus cried too.

The shortest verse in the whole Bible is just two words: 'Jesus wept.'

He cried with His friends.

God doesn't tell us to stop being sad. He sits down right next to us.

Can you take a big deep breath? In and out. When you're sad, take that breath and remember: God is right there. Closer than ever.

Prayer

Let's pray. Repeat after me:
Dear God,
When I am sad,
please come close to me.
Thank you that you do.
We love you!
Amen.

Listen to this devotional with audio narration and illustrations in the Seedling: Bible Stories app — short devotionals for Christian families with children ages 2–5.