The ministry of grief

I’ve been told that one of the interesting aspects of this blog is that there is a wide variety of subjects that I bring up.  This is evident just in looking at the last few blogs that I’ve written.  I do have a lot of interests.  But when I started this blog back in 2011, I never would have thought that one of the subject matters that I would tackle is my own personal grief.  My father’s unexpected passing turned my world upside-down.

To lose someone that you love is excruciating pain.  For me, it was the most intensely painful season of my life.  And that pain never really goes away; you just adapt and get used to the aching hole that the departed loved one’s absence leaves in your life.  But there’s another interesting phenomenon that occurs when you lose someone you love: stories of other people’s loss hits you differently.

For example, on September 11th, we commemorated the fifteenth anniversary of the horrible events of 9/11/01.  Before the Patriots/Cardinals game kicked off on Sunday Night Football, they played the recorded thoughts of President’s George W. Bush and Barack Obama.  President Bush’s words in particular gripped me.  He spoke of how for so many it was just another day of football, but for the thousands of people who lost loved ones that horrendous day, 9/11/16 was a very difficult day.  I was hit with a wave of emotion and near tears at that thought.  I instantly resonated with the intense emotional pain of those families.

Recently I learned of another loss.  My sister-in-law’s Grandma passed away a little over a week ago.  I didn’t have the opportunity to spend a lot of time with her (just at a few family get-togethers), but I know the agonizing pain that is gripping my sister-in-law and that whole family who loves her.  Incidentally, if you are a praying person, please keep them in your prayers.

Did you notice my blog title today?  I called it 'The ministry of grief.'  What I mean by that is because God helped me trudge through my intense grief, I now have a responsibility to turn around and help others in their grief.  2 Corinthians 1:4 says that God “comforts us in all our troubles so what we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God.”  By the way, I know from personal experience that one of the best ways I can do this is to cover the mourning with prayer.  Not to try to offer concise explanations or try to force them to just get over it and move on with life.  There is no quick fix when it comes to losing someone you love.  Grief takes time.

Kevin