Griefing

I remeber it as if it were yesterday. The phone call my mother got telling her that my father who I would never get to know had passed. I was only ten years old at the time. I griefed as a ten year old would grief. But even today as an adult I still find that I have some unresolved feelings of grief where my father is concerned. I feel as if I was cheated out having the opportunity to know the man, and the consequences for my adult life have been very real and profound, often times dowright arduous. As human beings there are a wide range of emotions that God has equipped us with. Each emotion he has given us serves a very important role in our over all well being. To stay psychologically healthy we must learn to utilize each one as God has equipped us to use them. The bible says there is a time and season for everything, a time to laugh, a time to cry, a time to live, a time to die. One of the most prominant emotions we have that a lot of us struggle with is the emotion of grief. When our lord and savior Jesus Christ was here on earth it is recorded in the bible that on three occassions he griefed. Grief by definition says, deep and poignant suffering caused by stress due to a loss.

  Jesus griefed at the death of Lazerus, he griefed for the city of jeruselum and he griefed when he was in the garden of gethsemane. I think it is important to point out that he knew Gods plan did not allow for defeat in any of these situations. He would ultimatly get the victory in each and everyone of them. He would raise Lazerus from the dead. jeruselum will ultimately be the great city where all christians will be able to see God face to face on a daily basis, and although he knew he faced a physical death after leaving gethsemane, he knew God would raise him from the dead as well. What is also very important to point out is this. God gave us the emotion of grief for a reason. Jesus griefed because he could feel the pain and sorrow of mary at her brothers passing. He felt Gods anguish at a world that has went terribly wrong. And he felt his own grief at knowing his life would soon end.

  From a purely scientific standpoint, the tears that come when we are laughing and the tears that come when we are crying are made up of two differnt types of chemicals. They contain in them chemistry or elements from our bodies that are released in response to joy or pain. The response is appropriate in helping our bodies allieviate the joy or stress connected to each event. There are four distinct stages to grief, shock, denial, guilt and acceptance or resolution. The important thing to point out is that each and everyone of us has to deal with the stages effectively to remain emotionally healthy after experiencing grief. The important thing to note is not to become stuck in any given stage for a long extended period of time. We must go through each one, pass through to the next stage and complete the cycle at some point to remain active cognitively healthy human beings.

  It has been concluded that we learn more in our valley experiences than in our mountain top experiences. God understands every human emotion and does not tire at every one of our lamenations. He understands our need to grief better than we do. "But he longs that you do not grief as the rest who have no hope."I Thessalonians 4: 13. But we must fully understand that in our tomorrows we always have hope.