The phrase came to me one morning as I have people close to me who are grieving the passing of a loved one and grieving other circumstances. No one wants to go through pain. However, through life’s journey, we will encounter pain because we are not perfect and live in an imperfect world. But, believers, we have a perfect God that knows all and is touched by our pain. Jesus bore our pain for us, so we give it over to him because we can’t do it in our natural strength. It also makes us think about our eternity here on earth. We were created to glorify God and live out His purpose for our lives here on earth.
Ecclesiastes 7:2 Message Version:2 You learn more at a funeral than at a feast—After all, that’s where we’ll end up. So we might discover something from it.
No one likes going to funerals, but it makes you think about your life and what legacy you want to leave behind. Grief comes to all of us. We either make the best of it and move forward in God and our purpose or stay in misery living in the past, causing us not to move forward. We can only do it with the help of God and others who have gone through grief and came out better. The word of God is filled with events where people had to deal with grief and move forward.<
Joshua 1:1-4 Message Version: After the death of Moses, the servant of God, God spoke to Joshua, Moses’ assistant: “Moses, my servant is dead. Get going. Cross this Jordan River, you and all the people. Cross to the country I’m giving to the People of Israel. I’m giving you every square inch of the land you set your foot on—just as I promised Moses. From the wilderness and this Lebanon east to the Great River, the Euphrates River—all the Hittite country—and then west to the Great Sea. It’s all yours. All your life, no one will be able to hold out against you. In the same way, I was with Moses; I’ll be with you. I won’t give up on you; I won’t leave you. Strength! Courage! You will lead this person to inherit the land I promised to give their ancestors.
God told Joshua to get up to take over the land after Moses passed on. God said he would be with him and give him strength. It takes a lot of power to move on when a loved one has passed on. However, we can find comfort in knowing that God is with us, and we can rely on His strength to get us through. In 1 Samuel 16, Samuel was mourning King Saul because he loved Saul even though he disobeyed God. God asked Samuel, “How long will you mourn for Saul?” God instructed Samuel to find another king. Our Saul could be a friendship, relationship, or work environment that we are grieving, and God is telling us to get up and move on.
Live your life to glorify God and His purpose while He has you here on earth. If you are still determining your salvation, be sure of your eternity. Accept Jesus Christ into your life now. Life is like a vapor. For those saved, we know we are crossing over to the other side into the next life.
John 11:25 Easy read Version: 25 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection. I am life. Everyone who believes in me will have life, even if they die. 26 And everyone who lives and believes in me will never really die. Martha, do you believe this?” 27 Martha answered, “Yes, Lord. I believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God. You are the one who was coming to the world.”
When you grieve, you think about life when you leave.
Prayer: Lord, thank you for breathing life into me and making me a living soul. I live my life to glorify you because life is like a vapor. God, I thank you for taking my grief and carrying my sorrow, so I give it to you. When I leave this life, I am crossing over to the next life with you. I lean on you for strength to make it through grief. Those who are not saved repeat this: “Lord Jesus I am a sinner and in need of a savior. I repent of my sins and receive Jesus into my heart as Lord.” I believe Jesus died, was buried, he rose, and is living; now I have eternity with you. In Jesus’ name. Amen.