WHERE TO TURN IN YOUR GRIEF

There are two basic options when trying to heal from loss:

Option 1: Turn to our own resources. In so doing, we can be sure that this would be what Satan wants in order to keep us steeped in our pain, living without hope. 

Option 2: We can turn to God. I Peter 5:7 “Casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you.” Our Creator, the One Who knows us better than anyone else on this earth, wants to be with us in our pain, always working to provide peace, comfort, encouragement and hope.

How do we face our hurt with God rather than turning our backs on Him, as so many do, during the grieving process? What does the grief journey look like when we walk it with God?

It looks like – SURRENDER! Surrender to what?

To HIS SOVEREIGNTY - Psalm 103:19 “The Lord has established His throne in the heavens, and His sovereignty rules over all.” God’s Hand is intimately entwined in our losses. That thought could actually make the pain worse, rather than better. It might leave us thinking, like Mary and Martha in John 11, ”Lord, you could have stopped this, and you purposely didn’t. Why?” God’s sovereignty could leave us more angry than comforted – UNLESS - we remember that, also in His sovereignty, He allowed HIMSELF to suffer – WITH PURPOSE.

To HIS LOVE - Jeremiah 31:3 “…I have loved you with an everlasting love…” When we are hurt, we spend a lot of time saying, “Why did this happen?” “Why did this happen to ME?” “What kind of God would allow this to happen?” When we have been hurt the most, that is when we need to trust God’s LOVE the most! God loves us enough to feel our hurt. He proved it by becoming Flesh, dwelling among us and subjecting HIMSELF to suffering and hurt!

To HIS FAITHFULNESS - Lamentations 3:21-23 “This I recall to my mind, therefore I have hope. It is of the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.” How do we surrender to the faithfulness of God when life has been ravaged by loss? How can we trust it? We know that His powerful right Hand could prevent loss. But, sometimes He chooses not to do so. When that happens, we need to trust that God is faithful, and reinforce our trust with verses such as: Isaiah 55:9 “His ways are not our ways and His thoughts not our thoughts?” Jeremiah 29:11 “I know the plans I have for you. They are not meant to harm you but to give you a future and a hope.”      

To WHO HE IS - Psalm 18:1-3 tells us Who He is: “I love You, O Lord, my strength. The Lord is my Rock and my fortress and my deliverer, my God, my Rock, in Whom I take refuge; my Shield and the Horn of my Salvation, my Stronghold. I call upon the Lord who is worthy to be praised, and I am saved from my enemies.” God is: Our STRENGTH (counteracting the weakness that grief produces). Our ROCK (the stability you need when life and emotions seem out of control). Our FORTRESS (protection from the enemy who wants to tear us apart as we grieve). Our DELIVERER (He’s a safety net – cushioning us in grief). Our REFUGE (Ah! The place of peace away from the turmoil of loss). Our SHIELD (deflecting the darts of the one who wants to pick at our wounds). Our HORN of SALVATION (the One Who will fight for us). And Our STRONGHOLD (the place we can run to get away from the anguish of the moment).

Choose Option 2 when your heart is broken!!!!