As I heard during a church service recently, “All loss is loss.” The guest pastor stood on stage speaking about the recent and sudden death of his wife. One hour she was alive and fine, the next he was rushing home.
He spoke bravely and confidently, as he affirmed the congregation, “All loss is loss.”
There are some people who try to minimize their loss by ignoring their feelings, or self-medicating. For others like myself, there are people in their life who downplay grief.
Onlookers say, “It’s not a big deal, you’ll be fine.” or “You should be over that by now.”
All loss is loss. These statements are not helpful and on the contrary, are quite hurtful. Most people know the feeling of grief, and if they don’t know now, one day they will. Jesus foretold that we would suffer in this world. He didn’t say we might suffer, he said that we will.
“I have told you these things so that in me you may have peace. You will have suffering in this world. Be courageous! I have conquered the world.” (John 16:33)
Grief takes many forms, from the death of a loved one to the loss of a significant relationship. As people come to learn grief, they will witness their behavior within its five stages. The time spent in each stage will vary between people and the order will differ also.
What Jesus offers is a solution to coping with the grief we experience. No matter where we are in the stages of grief, keeping our connection with God alive is vital. Jesus conquered the world and believes we can do the same.
But do we trust him?
“Rejoice always, pray constantly, give thanks in everything; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18)
I would like to add emphasis to the words always, constantly, and everything. If we honor this verse, that means we are relying on God when we are high and when we are low, including our moments of grief.
One way we can keep our connection with God intact during our difficult seasons of grief is through song. When prayer feels inadequate and we want to do more to connect with God, we can simply turn on a hymn that speaks to the pain of our circumstance.
Sometimes song and dance can make the difference between an evening spent in despair or an evening spent in peace.
Here are 10 hymns and songs for trusting God in the midst of grief.
Photo Credit: © Unsplash/Paolo Nicolello
