Going To The Chapel

When my mother was in the final stages of kidney failure, we spent a lot of time in hospitals. In those long days, I often slipped away to the hospital chapel. At first, I thought I was going for me—just to sit quietly, pray, and be still. But over time, I realized those visits weren’t only for my comfort.

More than once, I encountered others in those chapels who were broken. Some of them didn’t even know why they had walked in. They weren’t churchgoers, some had no relationship with God at all—but in their panic and pain, they were reaching out for something, someone, beyond themselves.

It was then I understood: God had placed me there not just to be comforted, but to be a comfort. 2 Corinthians 1:3–4 says, “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.”

When we are at our lowest and weakest, God’s presence becomes most real. And sometimes, He uses our weakness as a bridge to someone else’s need. What feels like a personal refuge may actually be a divine assignment—to love, to listen, to pray, to point someone toward Christ. In their darkest hour, God can shine bright—if we help flip the switch.