Grief
There are many ways people can be in grief and they all involve the same thing, loss. Most likely it will be the loss of a loved one but often it can involve a job or they could be going through a divorce or some other personal tragedy. The tricky thing in dealing with grief is help them get through whatever stage they may be in. There are several stages to grief (some places say 7 others say 4) and they are not always linear. Often a person will cycle back to an earlier stage to resolve it. For a more detailed description of the stages please see the Web Resources.
Stages of Grief are:
4 stages | 7 stages |
Shock and denial Intense Concern Despair and Depression Recovery | Shock and denial Pain and Guilt Anger and Bargaining Depression, reflection and loneliness The Upward Turn Reconstruction and working through Acceptance and hope |
Possible things to pray for:
- Pray for them to experience God’s comfort.
- Pray for people to be available to them to talk through their grief
- Encourage them to keep faith in God and what he can do.
- Pray that God will help them with strength and courage to make it through this time.
- Let them know that God does care for them.
Verses to share:
Matthew 5:4 “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.”(NIV)
2 Corinthians 1:3-4 “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.”(NIV)
Isaiah 41:10 “So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”(NIV)
Psalm 23:4 “Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me;
your rod and your staff, they comfort me.”(NIV)
Psalm 34:18 (NIV)“The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.”
Bible plans:
Grief Bites: Hope for the Holidays (dealing with grief during the holidays)
https://www.bible.com/reading-plans/1964-grief-bites-hope-for-the-holidays
Grief Survivor:
https://www.bible.com/reading-plans/1218-grief-survivor
Messages Series:
When God Doesn’t Make Sense - https://www.life.church/media/when-god-doesnt-make-sense/
Puzzled - https://www.life.church/media/puzzled/
Why? - https://www.life.church/media/why/
Hope In The Dark - https://www.life.church/media/hope-in-the-dark/
Blog Posts:
Grieving Led Me to One Realization - https://finds.life.church/grieving-the-loss-of-a-father-at-21-led-me-to-one-realization-about-life/
My Friend Lost a Child—How Can I Help? - https://finds.life.church/my-friend-lost-a-child-how-can-i-help/