“Lord Almighty, God of Israel! The soul in distress, and the spirit in pain, cry out to You: Hear, O Lord, and have mercy, for You are a merciful God, and have mercy on us, for we have sinned against You” (Bar 3:1-2). The Psalmist is similar to this: “You are the one fleeing from the sorrow that holds me. Joyous! Deliver me from those who have passed me by” (Ps. 31:7). We cannot get rid of any sorrow by anything other than prayer and confession of our sins before God. For just as someone who communicates his sorrow to his faithful friend receives a certain consolation and consolation, so much the more when we communicate to God, Who is merciful by nature and close to those who call upon Him in truth, the sorrows of our hearts, and confessing our sins, we humble ourselves, we fall before His Majesty, we receive either deliverance when His will pleases and is beneficial to us, or certainly relief and consolation: “Call Me in the day of your sorrow, and I will deliver you.” (Ps. 49:15). Listen to God’s comforting word: “Because of sin I grieved him a little, and smote him, and turned My face away from him; and he was saddened, and went on his way despondent; and I saw his ways, and healed him, and comforted him, and gave him true comfort” (Is. 57:17-18).
Every sorrow and misfortune comes from sin, and if there were no sin, there would be no sorrow. This is why sorrow is sent so that sin can be cleansed, and when the sin that brings sorrow is cleansed, the sorrow itself will be taken away. Therefore, one must cleanse one’s sins through repentance, confession before God, prayer and faith, so that sorrow and sadness are taken away by the grace of God, and consolation comes, like the sun after dark days, or like food after fasting - pleasant and entertaining.
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