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How to Help a Grieving Friend
I sat quietly back, sipping on the lemonade the pastor had brought to the house, along with sacks full of Chick-Fil-A, and watched as the parade of people stopped by my sister’s house. We were only 36 hours into this shock wave, and there was already a long list of things to do; decisions that had to be made sooner rather than later. Hours earlier, we sat with the Director of the memorial gardens where my young nephew would be laid to rest, picking out all the various elements one had to do before the burial. This was not our first experience. We’d unfortunately entered the world of family loss…
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Do You Have the Faith of the Centurion?
Christians often use the functionality of a chair as one of their analogies about faith. Our faith is that the chair will hold us up when we sit in it. The thought is that without faith that a chair will do what it’s supposed to do, we would never sit down. That’s a fair analogy. After all, every day we sit down in various chairs throughout the day. But the analogy is also flawed if what we’re trying to show is an example of having faith in God. What happens when you have the faith for that chair to hold you, so you walk over and sit in it. And…
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That 3-Letter Word We All Use
I've often thought it was unfair that some people lived dangerous and reckless lives, smoking, drinking and driving, doing drugs, eating whatever they want...and live for a long time. While others try to make good decisions, and pass away so young?
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Happy Heavenly Birthday
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A Sad, Happy Birthday to My Friend
Today, September 17, is my friend Kay’s 56th birthday. More accurately, I guess I should say that it would have been her birthday. The last time I saw Kay was over the Labor Day weekend, a few weeks before her 46th birthday. That was when she decided to defy what her doctors were telling her, and prove them wrong. Ten years earlier, Kay had been diagnosed with breast cancer. Several years and multiple surgeries, celebrations, and disappointments later, her doctors spoke those fated words that no one in the middle of a battle wants to hear. He told her they had done everything and there was nothing more they could…
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Into the Arms of the Lord
A friend and former colleague off mine texted me on yesterday (Tuesday) and said that they were calling hospice for her mom. I was out and about, and missed the first text by about an hour. This Wednesday morning, a second text alerted me that she had passed away earlier in the morning. “Mom slipped quietly into the arms of the Lord early this morning. She is at peace.” I knew her mother lived back in her hometown, about an hour from where my friend lived. She was elderly and had been battling dementia for many years. My friend’s sister had been the primary caretaker since their dad passed away…
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The Bittersweet Grief in Celebrations and Special Occasions
As I sat in the audience watching my oldest nephew being pinned during his promotion ceremony, I couldn’t help but think about how proud my parents; especially my dad, would have been of him. My dad served over 20 years in the US Army; including three tours in two different wars. Growing up on a military base, and later settling just outside of one at his retirement, was the only pre-adult life I knew. I had several family members who became a part of the military service. Both of my brothers entered the Army right out of high school, with one making it a career choice, just as my dad…
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Praise to the God of All Comfort
“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God.” 2 Corinthians 1:3-4
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Can You Find “Good” in Your Grief?
I grieved his death, but in some ways, perhaps, resented it as well.
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National Suicide Prevention – Call 1-800-273-8255!
I hesitated posting anything earlier this week in the aftermath of hearing about Kate Spade’s death. It was hard enough to hear about someone my own age, dying, but to learn that it was a suicide was even harder to take. I’m also not a therapist or a mental health counselor, and so I didn’t want to carelessly write something that might upset someone, or trigger a negative response. But this morning, I woke up to the early sounds of text messages coming from family and friends wishing me a Happy Birthday. And just five minutes after I was fully awake, yet still debating whether I really wanted to actually…
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Blessed are those Who Mourn
Six years ago, on June 1, 2012, I was spending the last night of my week-long mission trip to Haiti in the courtyard area of the center where we stayed. It had been a long, productive, tiring, and blessings filled trip. I was both ready to go and wanting to stay at the same time. A lot of good work had been done. We were gathering together one last night to talk about what each team had accomplished that day throughout the village, and to pray, sing, read scripture, and rejoice over our time in the village of Neply before heading back to the States the next day. There was…
