With this being Holy Week I find myself thinking about Jesus’s death and the anguish His family and friends had to face as they watched Him die.
One of the hardest things to go through in life is to witness the death of a loved one. It is even more difficult when your loved one is killed innocently through a tragedy and/or at a young age.
There were two separate tragic deaths this week in my community. Both were young men (19 and 24). Why God allowed these two men with bright futures to leave this world so unexpectedly is a question only God can answer. We cannot understand His holy mind because we do not see the big picture like He does (Isaiah 55:9).
The truth is during a crisis many will walk away from their faith in a loving God because they cannot understand why He would allow such suffering.
As followers of Christ, we are, however, to trust Him and His goodness even when life doesn’t make sense to us. This is especially challenging in times of deep disappointment and loss.
In Matthew 7:24-27 Jesus teaches us the value of building a strong faith upon His truths. In verse 25 it says: “Though the rain comes in torrents and the floodwaters rise and the winds beat against that house, it won’t collapse because it is built on bedrock.” I believe this is the answer to how we can trust God through the darkest days.
To endure the hardships in life your faith has to be built on the solid foundation of Jesus Christ (Tweet this).
It is through God’s truths and promises written in His Word (the Holy Bible) that you will find healing, comfort, encouragement and hope.
God’s Word can sustain you through your painful time of grief.
Friends and family are definitely a vital part of helping through your time of sorrow as well, yet I believe at the end of the day, it’s mainly your hope in God’s truths that will bring you the supernatural peace and comfort you need.
If you are currently grieving, my heart aches for you. Allow yourself the time you need to mourn over the loss of your loved one.
Talk to God and to others about what you are feeling. Allow yourself to feel anything that you are feeling. Especially if you are angry-tell Jesus. He knows anyways. Keeping resentment towards God inside is the worse thing you can do. Cry out to Him. Yell if you need to, but make sure you get it out.
I encourage you to build on your faith, especially if you are hurting. If you have to force yourself to read your Bible, force yourself. Reflect and meditate on God’s promises written for you.
It is Friday today, but Sunday is coming. Today is a time of sadness and grieving, of death and loss; but as believers of Jesus Christ our hope is not in today. Our hope is in eternal life with Jesus. Psalm 30:5 says “Weeping may last through the night, but joy comes with the morning.“
As followers of Christ, our home is in Heaven, not here on earth (Philippians 3:20). We can put our faith and hope in the Resurrection of Jesus and in the eternal life we have with Him (1 Peter 1:3).
Jesus said: “I am the resurrection and the life. Anyone who believes in me will live, even after dying. Everyone who lives in me and believes in me will never ever die. Do you believe this, Martha?” (John 11:25-26).
Do you believe this? I hope so.
I pray that God’s supernatural comfort and peace would surround those suffering through a loss of a loved one. May you allow His presence to be a blanket of comfort over your broken heart. May your strength come from the promises you have in knowing that your assurance is in the eternal life offered through Jesus Christ.
Praise be to the Risen King, because of Him we can live with great expectation and peace. Hallelujah to the Lamb of God.
Please leave me a comment on how you have handled grief in your life. If you don’t know Jesus personally, but want to, please email me.
“I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.” ~ John 16:33
Photo credit: Google Images
Any time of year is a difficult time to lose a loved one.
I know two women who are currently sitting lovingly by their husbands who are nearing their Home-going.
There are some journeys we must take alone – in the deeper parts of what we need – and that can only be done with Jesus. It surely helps to have others walk with us and talk with us after a loved one has died. Only He knows the depths of our feelings. He also is the only one who also holds all the memories of what we have shared with the one who has died. He can help us as we remember as “He was there” to share in the events.
This is a thoughtful post, Tweeny. Thank you and a Blessed Easter to you and your family.
Dear Lynn,
You are absolutely correct in saying that any time is a difficult time to lose a loved one. I’m sad for the two women you know that are having to let go of their husbands soon. It is so hard letting go of our loved ones, even when we know we will see them in Heaven. We are still humans with strong feelings.
I love the point you made about some journeys we must take alone, with our Lord. Processing the loss of our loved ones is definitely one of those journeys’s. Only God truly understands and only He can comfort us.
Thanks for taking the time out to comment Lynn. It means a lot to me. May you have a blessed celebration of our Lord’s Resurrection.
Love,
Tweeny
Another excellent blog post, Tweeny. You have a real gift for encouraging faith in others. Good advice for the grieving. I never took time to grieve when my parents died. I dealt with it by keeping busy, and that wasn’t the best way. I appreciate your wise counsel.
Dear Arlene,
I appreciate your encouragement of my blog post. This one was a hard one to write as it is an extremely sensitive topic. So I especially appreciate your commenting here.
I think the way you handled your parents death is very common. Most people do not want to face the pain because it hurts too much. However, It’s never too late to grieve. If you still need to process the loss of your parents I hope you will do so.
Have a blessed celebration of our Lord’s Resurrection.
Blessings~
Tweeny
Beautifully written as always straight from your heart. Still processing the grief since Mom’s home going, but resting in His peace, rejoicing knowing that I will see her again in glory. Hard to understand how people go through this kind of loss without God.
Because it is Good Friday, it is a sad day of grieving for all believers in Christ Jesus. I wrestle with the truth that MY sin put Him there, and that He loved me enough to willingly die such a horrible death. I love Good Friday services, but we know that Christ did not stay dead! Sunday is coming! Easter Sunday when Christ arose from the dead just as He said He would! Praise God for His gift of eternal life, and His willingness to die in my place for my sins! This is a love we can never fully understand!
God has given you a beautiful gift of writing sister, so please continue and give Him the glory! (I know that you do!) Love you girl! Happy Easter to the Randall family who will all rejoice because He lives!
Thank you for your kind words Sherry. You have been a source of great encouragement for me. I too miss your mom. She was a very pleasant woman, and one that loved Jesus. It was always such a joy to be around her. You could just sense that she had been with the Lord and that He was an intimate friend of hers. You are blessed to have had a mother like her.
I love you sis. Eternally grateful to you for being the willing vessel to bring me into His loving arms. 🙂