Those Who Grieve Well, Grow Well
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The goal of processing grief is not to understand the reasons for loss, but to receive God’s comfort in the midst of loss. Four responses to loss that will circumvent the comfort God wants to provide:
Blame it on the devil - over spiritualize the loss
Look for sin in the camp - try to find whose fault it is.
Rationalize it - a head-level response.
Ignore it and pretend it didn’t happen - a form of denial.
As leaders, we have the privilege of guiding people to grieve their losses well. A wise leader creates space for their followers to ‘pay attention’.
Four steps for healthy grieving:
Pay attention to your heart, acknowledging the pain, loss, anger, and sadness.
Don’t rush the time between sorrow and healing.
Use the Psalms to give a biblical language to your grieving.
Allow (when ready) the old to give birth to the new.
As I have grown older, I have learned to pay attention to my heart and to process my grief with God honestly. I have learned not to hide from my losses.
I have learned the hard way that past losses can negatively impact present relationships if not dealt with before God and with others.”
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