Healing from Loss

In this world we will have troubles and trials, but we can rejoice through them all because Christ IN us has already overcome them all (John 16:33).

However, it is important to allow our soul to grieve each loss. Everyone experiences loss at one time or another during our lifetime.

We all react to loss in a similar fashion. We suffer both emotional and physical distress in our grief, caused by the heightened levels of adrenalin in our bloodstream.

When a segment of our support system in this life crumbles, our assurance of security, safety and stability crumble as well.

Part of our purpose, identity, social status and provision vanish. Unfamiliar and unwanted issues occur, which demand our attention and time.

Our life is full of turmoil, loss, isolation and grief. We feel overwhelmed, depressed, hopeless and unable to cope. We find it difficult to function in both our normal roles and new responsibilities.

Some people are angry and others withdraw from society. We feel abandoned by significant others, and maybe even by God.

However, we have hope of full recovering when we cling ever closer to God. He gives us His peace, which transcends all of our circumstances.

Prayer:

Father God, our life on this earth is a series of losses from favorite toys, to special treasures, to important people and places, all of which helped to define who we are. Remind us to allow our self to work through the grief process and not to short-cut our time of healing.

Help us to reflect on the positive side of grief as an opportunity to evaluate our priorities in life, to examine our values and to deepen our beliefs. Guide us as we move toward a more mature relationship with You, and a stronger faith in Your faithfulness as we experience Your provision in all of our negative circumstances.

Thought for the Day:

The impact of loss is so profound that it reaches to the very core of our being and affects every aspect of our life--physically, emotionally, mentally, socially and spiritually.

Eternal Outlook

Well-meaning friends and relatives often attempt to talk us out of our negative emotions in an effort to help us to feel better. However, this only causes us to suffer more acutely.

We feel misunderstood, unaccepted and invalidated. They want to help; but they complicate our issues, and we feel more alone than we did before they tried to support us.

Their perception of our issue is different than ours. They were not in the circumstance, so they cannot fully comprehend our viewpoint.

We can help one another more fully by listening and affirming each other's feelings, rather than trying to help someone change their feelings.

We can also share a similar experience and how God taught us to deal with it, which may give them an idea on how to resolve their own issue.

Sometimes, Satan will tempt us to believe his lies, or to trust the feelings in our heart. This may cause us to reject God's truth, which compounds our problems.

The Bible is clear in its assessment of such behavior. The heart is deceptive and often wicked. It will rarely steer us in the right direction (Jeremiah 17:9).

Our thoughts influence our feelings, and our feelings will direct our behavior. Therefore, it is imperative for us to think about the positive and find the root of our negative emotions (Philippians 4:8).

This is particularly difficult for people with a melancholy personality. We always see the glass half-empty. Yet, God's Holy Spirit will replace our destructive tendencies with His fruit (Galatians 5:22-23).

Negative thoughts signal a need in our soul: a slight to mourn, forgiveness to grant, a need to meet, an idol to cast down, faulty thinking to correct, etc.

As we focus on the eternal, put temporal issues in Godly perspective, and take an inventory of our soul in order to meet our own needs, we find more peace and joy in life. 

Prayer:

Father God, we often feel life's issues with a depth of emotion, which is difficult to explain in words. People want to encourage us and help us to restore our joy, but they often come across as indifferent and uncompassionate.

Help us to comfort one another with Your love within us and to show patience and genuine concern. Remind us to view the issues of life from Your eternal perspective, rather than our limited earthly standpoint. Enable us to learn to laugh more and not to take our self or life so seriously.

Thought for the Day:

As we fully grieve our losses, we can change our focus and find the joy of the Lord regardless of our circumstances.

Jesus is All We Need

God orchestrates the losses, broken heart, difficult trials, and painful tribulation in our life to bring us to the place of total surrender to His love and our perfect submission to His will.

The quicker we come to the place of complete compliance to His will, the fewer negative aspects enter our life. 

The less we trust in and cherish the temporal aspects of this life, the fewer losses we experience.

The more intimate we grow in our union with Christ, the less we experience the negative effects of trauma. 

We are not devastated by our losses, because nothing can separate us from God's love (Romans 8:35-39). We will not lose Christ, and He is all we really need. 

We are complete in Him (Colossians 2:10). We have all wisdom, right standing with God, holiness and redemption in Christ (1 Corinthians 1:30).

His grace is sufficient to uphold us in any tragedy or insufficiency, which we face in this world (2 Corinthians 12:9). In Christ, we have every spiritual blessing, which heaven has to offer us (Ephesians 1:3).

God perfects us and sanctifies us in Christ (Hebrews 10:14). Jesus is not an option to add to our life; He is our whole life (Colossians 3:4). 

He is our peace, and He demolishes every wall, which stands in our way (Ephesians 2:14). Jesus is our treasure hidden within us; our pearl of great price; our coin, which was lost, but now is found (Matthew 13:45-46; Luke 15:8-10; 2 Corinthians 4:7). 

Jesus is our all in all (Ephesians 4:6). He contains all the fullness of the Trinity (Colossians 2:9), and He triumphed over our enemies through His death (Colossians 2:15). 

He gives us victory through His resurrection (1 Corinthians 15:55). Jesus is all we need (2 Peter 1:3-4).

Prayer:

Father God, thank You that through Christ we have redemption through His blood and forgiveness for our sins. He is Your actual image and through Him everything was created and is under His authority. He is our all sufficiency (Colossians 1:13-16).

Remind us that the philosophy of man and the cares of this world are nothing when compared to the majesty of Christ on high. We give Him all of our praise and the glory for everything we ever accomplish through Your Spirit.

Thought for the Day:

Through Christ we find our right standing with God and enter a spiritual life, which never ends.