Devotional 10-4-19

"Because of the Lords great love, we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail.
They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.
I say to myself, "The Lord is my portion; therefore I will wait for him."
Lamentations 3: 22-24 NIV

 In Lamentations 1: 1-6 Jerusalem is in mourning. Psalm 137 is about suffering in captivity. I have never experienced physical captivity, but I am all too familiar with mourning and the captivity of grief. In January, as most of you know I lost my 26 year old grandson. In April, I lost one of my best friends since 7th grade to brain cancer. During that time I also lost three old friends that although they were no longer a part of my life, were still friends who will always have a special place in my memories and in my heart.

Our church has also had more than its share of mourning and grief in the past 12 months. We have lost people who we felt were irreplaceable to us personally and to our church. We have experienced the ups and downs of joy and fear as three of our grandchildren were born with health problems. We have celebrated, cried, prayed, and loved each other through all of this and so much more.

How do we as Christians deal with living in a world that will never be quite the same without our loved ones in it? In Philippians 4: 4-7 NIV Paul tells us: "Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near.
Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving present your requests to God. And the peace of God which transcends all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus." How do you "Rejoice!" when you heart is breaking? When I am feeling sad, it helps me to remember the good times and to thank God for that person, the relationship, the love, and all the joy that they brought into my life and the lives of many others. Could this be a way rejoicing?

Because of the Lords great love, we are not consumed by our grief, for his compassion never fails. I will wait for him--for his healing love.

Margaret Williams