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Loss...Grief...Hope...

We are hurting people.  
We of all ages, all experience loss and grief which goes all the way back to the fall of man in Genesis 3 as our relationships were broken with God and with one another.  From the losses we experience, and the way grief impacts us all individually and collectively is so vast and widely different.  And yet, we are hardwired for a relationship with God and with one another as Yahweh (the LORD) tells us it is not good for man to be alone (Gen. 2:18).

How paradoxical is this statement: We are hurt in relationship, and we are healed in relationship. Grief is intimate because we are whole beings.  Our relational losses cause us to grieve and sometimes to the point of being in a crisis of faith – affecting our relationship with God.  Grief is proportional to intimacy we had with the person(s).   And yet, we have hope as we walk through our journey of grief.

 

“…the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.” 

(2 Cor. 1:3-4)

 

Our Father is leading the way in showing us by being the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort.  God demonstrates the process to us by how He comforts us in all our troubles and afflictions.  This shows us who He is, His character, and that He is at work even when we may not see it or feel it.  Our Father gives us purpose that through His comfort we can then comfort those in any trouble and affliction with the same comfort we were given.  This grief will pass although there is no timeline, to patiently endure and discover the strength and comfort that God our Father can give each one of us.  Our hope for the journey of grief.


You do not have the walk the journey alone.  Having a grief & loss coach meet you in the pain to walk with you through your journey of grief can be such a gift.  Take the first step in moving towards hope and emotional balance.

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