I never used to let anyone see me cry. Especially when it came to tears caused my non-physical hurts or struggles. I was in control of those emotions and I refused to be a weepy teenage girl. Nope nope nope. But then, I got sick. And though I still hid my tears in the quiet privacy of my bedroom, eventually circumstances made it impossible. And anyone and everyone saw me cry.

If you’ve been following this blog or my author social media accounts for a while, you’ll know that I’m no longer shy about talking about my tears. Because everyone cries. A lot of us try not to, or at the very least try to hide it, but every human needs to cry.

One day, God Himself will wipe every tear from our eyes and there will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain (see Rev 21), but until then, it’s okay to cry.

Hear that? It’s. Okay. To Cry.

It doesn’t make you weak. In fact, in some ways, it’s a strength to be able to let yourself weep.

When I cry, it’s not pretty. I gush snot everywhere. And I never have tissues, so it mostly ends up on my clothes. Woe to the person who might try to hug me to comfort me… they will not be able to escape the snot. Absolutely disgusting, I know. But it’s okay to cry. And more than that, it’s okay if other people see you cry.

One of my favorite quotes about crying comes from The Silver Chair by C. S. Lewis (I love Narnia):

“Crying is all right in its way while it lasts. But you have to stop sooner or later, and then you still have to decide what to do.”

Crying is all right in its own way. It’s okay to cry! Of course, the next part of the quote speaks to what happens after crying. Because, eventually, crying does have to stop. (And then we must decide what to do 😉 ). But in the meantime, give yourself permission to cry.

And in your crying, give your tears to God. Ask that He redeem them. He sees every single one, and He does not willingly bring suffering to anyone (see Lam 3:33). Cry on His shoulder and in His arms of love when there is no one else. When you are alone in your tears, turn to Him. He loves His children, and He will hold us while we cry.