Life...It Goes On

Trust in the Lord with all your heart;
    do not depend on your own understanding.

Seek his will in all you do,
    and he will show you which path to take.

Proverbs 3:5-6

 

When a tragedy strikes, the question that will ultimately be asked is: "Where Do We Go Now?"  That is a difficult idea to consider because out tendency is to withdraw from everyone and hide from the world.  We hide in dark rooms with curtains drawn.  We hide within ourselves losing ourselves in the routines of existence.  But let's take a look at a few things that help the Grieving, as well as the ones seeking to help:

 

1.  Grieving is a process and processes take time. 

2.  There are no short cuts to grieving.

3.  Understanding that the pain of grief can be intense helps us temper our attempts to "move things along."

4.  Accept that the person who is grieving may have setbacks.

5.  Understand that grieving is NOT wrong.

6.  If you are strong enough, walk the journey with the grieving and listen to them.  "A burden shared is half as heavy, and joy shared is twice as bright."

7.  Try to remember what helped you when you were grieving, and share that.

8.  Pray! Pray! Pray!  Remember that God let His own Son die on our behalf!  God knows better than we do what it feels like to grieve.

9.  Not every silence needs to be filled with words. Sometimes just sitting quietly with someone helps them know now much you care.

10.  Celebrate the baby steps of movement from grieving to living.  Don't go overboard with it though.  Use phrases like "thank you for coming with me to the store" or "Sharing with walk around the park with you made the stroll so much better."

 

Finally, don't give up on the person who is grieving.  Wounds of Grief can be VERY deep.

 

When Grief strikes, and it will, point to the Father who understands and loves without question.