The Psalmist writes, “Be gracious to me, O Lord, for I am in distress. . .” We are so grateful to God that we may come to Him to allow our spirits to rise. We reach to God for help and comfort. As I age, I turn to God every day because aging brings a more difficult path to walk. We need the lighted path that Jesus shows us. With the presence of God within us our trials are eased.
I am blessed with a wonderful wife of 54 years, two children, and three grandchildren. God is good to me. However, I grew up with a mother, father, and sister, all helped form who I am today. All have since passed. I wept and mourned at each of their deaths. Each time I turned to John’s writing, “Now is your time of grief, but I will see you again and you will rejoice, and no one will take away your joy (16:22).”
It is important for us to grieve; it cleanses our life of all the unpleasant events surrounding us. Our grief folds us into a temporary cocoon of self-centeredness; thus, removing those negative forces. As the Holy Spirit brings us from this web of sorrow, our spirit and souls are renewed to this the understanding that those departures are not permanent. As I write this, my mother, father, and sister are around me, looking over my shoulder, making sure I treat them fairly (I may snot have in my youth).
As humans, we are not perfect; our grief brings God into our lives, renewing our spirituality. We become stringer as we recover from our grief. We are thankful that God is a wonderful provider of Grace, Love, and Comfort.
© Russell Kendall Carter
Meditating to Heal 