Waves of Grief

Four friends lost loved ones in the same week and many of our church family are grieving. Our church family supports us by bringing food, visits, encourages, sends cards and prays.  Our prayer team prays for that first year.  And God is right there to comfort us. As I pray for them my heart breaks for them as they go on this grief journey.  

The same week I went to the beach and got in the rough water, going past the crashing waves.  I remembered, on numerous occasions, being knocked over, turned upside down like I was in a washing machine.  Rolling, twisting and sliding into the shore on the small shells, skinning my legs.  As I sat up I tried to feel for my bathing suit as I coughed and spit salt water out of my mouth. The wave came out of nowhere! 

Sometimes this is how I feel when I think of my Dad.  It has been 11 years today but some days it feels real and raw and hits me out of nowhere.  The waves do not come as often but they are still un- suspecting.  "Grief is like an earthquake.  The first one hits you and the world falls apart.  Even after you put the world together again there are aftershocks, and you never really know when those will come."  Grief is nature’s way of healing a broken heart.

We can trust Scripture.  Psalm 62: 8, "Trust in him at all times, you people; pour out your hearts to him, for God is our refuge."  God understands our feelings and our grief.  God tells us to release that grief to Him and He will help us deal with it.  Jesus wept when he heard that his friend, Lazarus, had died.  God wants us to grieve so we can deal with a loss.  Matthew 5: 4, "Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted."  We are all different and our grieving is unique.  To receive peace and rest, we just have to call out to God.  Psalm 61: 3, "Hear my cry, O God; listen to my prayer. From the ends of the earth I call to you, I call as my heart grows faint; lead me to the rock that is higher than I. For you have been my refuge, a strong tower against the foe."  

Sunday we sang, “You Make Me Brave”  “As Your love, in wave after wave Crashes over me, crashes over me…you make me brave…”  I pray you feel God’s love crashing over you!