Your Spiritual Journey
Grief
Grief
Grief, an overwhelming emotion that many of us have experienced way too often, is often due to the loss of a loved one. The more time you spend on this mortal coil, the more grief you are likely to experience. It never gets easier to deal with, no matter how many times you face it. We’ve definitely seen too much of this over the past few years. But is it okay to grieve? How long should we grieve, and should it be a solely private matter? Can we and how should we comfort those who are grieving, especially when we are in the same boat?
We know that Jesus grieved his dear friend Lazarus when he died because of that famous shortest verse in the Bible “Jesus wept” John 11:35. So, yes, it is more than okay to grieve. God expects it and our savior experienced it too. Jesus displayed his sorrow in public and did not try to hide it or pretend to be strong for those around him, including Lazarus’s sisters. The folly that “real men don’t cry” is silly and does not follow Jesus’ example.
David gives encouragement to those who are grieving in Psalms 34:18 when he says “the Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.” Job provides an example when he lost everything and still carried on. Just like we should. We are commanded to “spread the gospel to all the world” Mark 16:15. We can’t do that if we’re stuck in our own grief. 2 Corinthians 1:4 tells us that Jesus will “comfort us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we receive from God.”
Even though we know our time is finite, we still develop strong bonds with and for each other. When those bonds break, we can become heart broken. Yes, we rejoice that we have an eternal home where there will be no grief or pain and it is a wonderful thing to look forward to. But, while we are here, we can’t just stop living because life is too hard. It isn’t always easy to keep moving forward after a tragedy, but your brothers and sisters in Christ are the physical embodiment of Christ and can share his comfort when you need it most. Love them and lean on them as you would Jesus.
James Passmore
