Following Christ English

There is a time to look for things and a time to stop looking, a time to keep things and a time to throw away things, Ecclesiastes 3:6  How can we help our children navigate life’s losses? (1) Don’t underestimate their capacity for grief. Children are often the “forgotten” grievers. Their pain is real and intense; recognize and validate it. (2) Don’t avoid talking about the loss when they’re present. Excluding them from adults in mourning denies them the opportunity for support, and increased understanding about their loss. Include them in the family’s collective grief experience. (3) Encourage them to share their feelings about the loss. Teach them that being “real” is more important than being “strong,” and confirm that their feelings matter. Very young children have limited understanding about the meaning, permanence, and irreversibility of death. They can only talk about it briefly and concretely. Older children understand its meaning and should be encouraged to talk ab

There is a time to look for things and a time to stop looking, a time to keep things and a time to throw away things, Ecclesiastes 3:6 God’s Word neither ignores nor minimizes the painful realities of life. Inevitably, we and our loved ones will experience life’s losses: illness, aging, death, divorce, disability, loss of independence, unemployment, financial reversals, etc. Today’s culture prepares us for gain, but not for loss; to dance, but not to mourn (See Ecc 3:4). Major losses throw us into unchartered territory. So, we need to understand the dynamics of our loss in order to help us through it and back to living again. Life-changing loss begins with bereavement—the agony of feeling that something or someone indispensable to us has been ripped away, leaving us feeling robbed. Then comes grief—searing emotions of overwhelming sorrow that are often accompanied by anger, distress, confusion, and helplessness. Next, we move into the mourning stage—and begin to express our

There is a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to pull up plants, Ecclesiastes 3:2 Researchers at the Colorado Institute of Grief offer us this helpful four-stage path to recovery. Stage one – Shock. Our initial response is one of denial and disbelief. “I can’t believe this is happening…it’s not real!” There is a numbing of our senses, a God-designed natural “anesthesia” that buffers the early blow and allows us time to gather our coping mechanisms. Stage two – Protest. We feel anger and resentment against God, yet we feel guilty for blaming Him. We may blame ourselves, the doctors, the patient, and question God’s love and faithfulness—even bargaining with Him. “If You will just do a miracle and bring them back, I will…” Stage three – Disorganization. Everything comes apart at the seams. The lifestyle we knew and loved unravels. The dreams we cherished evaporate. We feel hopeless, powerless, lost in a strange, empty universe. Secondary losses may l