Finding Hope in Grief
“Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope: Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.”
I crave stability, peace, and positivity like the average person. If I am being honest, my perfectionism probably makes me crave it more than the average person. But life can’t always be summed up in a quote on a mug or a witty Instagram caption. My profession and expression of faith must go beyond “God is good all the time and all the time...” Some parts of life are messy and destructive, devastating and depressing. They require laments—crying, screaming, or maybe just a deep, world-weary sigh.
Reading scripture verses and spouting witty aphorisms to one another is great, but if we use them without the proper context, we won’t understand the depths of their meaning or application to our current condition. The book of Lamentations is just what its name means: a passionate expression of grief or sorrow, weeping. So much so that scholars call Jeremiah “the weeping prophet.” Lamentations is a collection of poetic prayers mourning the destruction of Jerusalem, and most of it doesn’t even sound like traditional ways we talk about God.
So many times in Christian circles, we dance around the messiness of grief. We try to ignore or gloss over the very awkward and discouraging fact that God has allowed something terrible to happen. The book of Lamentations reminds us to be authentic about our pain and go through the stages of grief. It encourages us to be honest about what hurts us, even if we feel it is God who is doing the hurting. In verse 16, Jeremiah practically says, “Yeah, so God punched me in the face with rocks and stepped on my head.” His writing is poetic, but it’s not at all pretty. The picture he paints one of fear, anger, and desperation. The most authentic manifestations of soul-deep grieving.
But suddenly, there is a shift. A ray of light in the dark night Jeremiah is in.
Lamentations 3:21-23 NIV
“Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope: Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.”
Jeremiah searched his mind, grasping for a blessing in the chaos and misfortune, and he found God’s love. He found consolation in the destruction and rubble. He found hope. And hope is one of the most potent forces in the universe. Without it, we quit and check out of life in some form or another. But even the slightest bit of it can give us the will to go on, feeling our pain but not consumed by it.
Spoiler alert: Jeremiah keeps lamenting.
Lamentations 3 is a long chapter, with another chapter and another after that. Grief is a part of life. I’m not promising you will feel better after reading this post, doing daily devotions, or a Bible study. You might receive a new perspective that shifts your whole mood, but more than likely, you will receive encouragement and then go back to feeling the pain of grief and sorrow.
Things will always make us weep, but I urge you to take those things to God. Cry and yell at God. Bring your doubts, worries, and accusations, but whatever you do, stay near to God. Hold on to your creator in times of trouble. And you will find rays of light in your darkness. Until one day, you will find the darkness gone, relegated to the shadows, as light fills the day and warms your face. Your pain will be forgotten momentarily and replaced with the purest joy.
That is my prayer for you.
But in the meantime, I weep with you.
If you are grieving, I encourage you to use the resources available to you to get help. Grief.com has many resources if you or a loved one is experiencing a loss. It can also be helpful to speak with a licensed therapist or clinician. If you are having thoughts of suicide, experiencing a mental health or drug crisis, or just need to talk, you can dial 988 or visit 988 Lifeline to chat with a caring counselor immediately. God wants us to experience healing, and sometimes we need professional help to make that happen. Find help today so that you can process your grief healthily.
