Day 3: Sadness + Grief

Take a breath, squeeze the Lord's hand; we are diving off the deep end and getting honest about how we experience sadness and/or grief.

If there's anyone we should look at as a model for how to experience emotional wholeness, it's Jesus. He's the perfect image of the Father:

"Philip said to him, "Lord, show us the Father, and we shall be satisfied." Jesus said to him, "Have I been with you so long, and yet you do not know me, Philip? He who has seen me has seen the Father..." (Jn 14:8-9)

When we look at Jesus’ time on earth recorded in the Gospels, we see a man who experienced a full range of emotions. He knew temptation, He knew righteous anger, He knew compassion, and He knew suffering and sadness.

If there was ever someone who did have full permission to slap on the 'God is good!' bandage, it was Jesus, the Son of God, but Jesus didn't do this. When His friend Lazarus died, He cried.

"Then Mary, when she came where Jesus was and saw him, fell at his feet, saying to him, "Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died." When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who came with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in spirit and troubled; and he said, "Where have you laid him? They said to him, "Lord, come and see." Jesus wept. So the Jews said, "See how he loved him!"" (Jn 11:32-26)

If you read the entire passage, you will see that Jesus knew that Lazarus would live, and He intended on raising him back to life. Jesus could have held onto that knowledge and refused to be affected by the sorrow around him. But instead, He allowed himself to be moved, and to weep and grieve alongside the people He loved.

Jesus wasn't afraid of experiencing big emotions, and when we know we have Jesus at our side, we don't have to be afraid of experiencing them either. You are not diving into an ocean of emotion alone. He has a tight hold on your hand.

Be Honest:

• Do I allow myself to fully experience sadness? Am I afraid to experience grief/sadness?
• Do I embrace seasons of grief, or do I have unprocessed grief inside me?
• How have I experienced God's comfort in times of sadness?

Bonus Challenge:

Write a list in your journal or your phone of anything you have unresolved grief around. Be aware when moments of sadness stir in your heart (it could be now, or it could be later) and give yourself the space to sit with the Lord and process your emotions. Invite God to be your Comforter and Healer in that area.