May 20, 2016

God Comforts the Grieving

The Lord is close to the brokenhearted
and saves those who are crushed in spirit. -- Psalm 34:18

It was a year ago today. My friend’s mother died. How do you get over that? How do you go on?

Certainly, it was not unexpected. She’d slowly left her family behind as she fell into the abyss that is Alzheimer’s. It didn’t make her passing any easier for the daughter who adored her.

She is only one of several friends who have buried their mamas in the last year. Mother’s Day was rough for them. They were orphans for the very first time.

But God was there. He is close to those who are grieving. He carries us when we don’t have the strength to go on.

Of course, there are other types of grief. There is the grief that comes when something, or someone, destroys your life as you know it. You grieve for the life that was even as you trudge forward into the life that now is.

Taking time to grieve is important. We want to push forward. We want to shake it off. We tell ourselves that if our faith was strong enough we wouldn’t be hurting so badly.

My friend said that everyone had told her time would ease her grief. Yet she still grieves as much today as she did the day her Mama went home to Jesus. Of course she does! There is no time limit on grief and everyone grieves differently. There is no right or wrong way. Really.

Several years ago I experienced a wave of grief that seemed to come out of nowhere. It has been years. Surely I was past it. I took it to God and then I remembered. It had snowed and that is a rare occurrence where I live. The last conversation I’d had with him was about snow. That fluffy white stuff that barely lasted a day brought back memories I thought were, if not gone, at least dealt with and put on that shelf called past life.

Time does make it easier but my friend will miss her Mama every single day for the rest of her life. That’s a reality that no one wants to share. One day I pray that she’ll be able to tell a funny story and not break down in tears. She’ll laugh, as we all will, and remember all the happy times.

But for now, for today, her heart is still broken. Jesus is right there with her. He comforts her. She holds on to her faith and His promise that she will see her Mama again one day.