You and I live in a fallen creation. God has not changed. He is still good. He is still love. He is still intimately concerned with the well-being of His creation. But death entered the world. Adam and Eve walked with God every day and talked with God every day. But we cannot see God face-to-face. Everyone is born with a fallen nature that is rebellious and sinful. Sometimes our circumstances bring pain. Those painful circumstances blur our focus from Him; His love for us, His care for us, His purpose for us.
Grief is a process of natural reactions to loss of a person, thing, dream, etc. Grief, like all other emotions, is personal. No one can tell you how you should feel. Your emotions are God-given.
Research shows that experiencing a loss triggers a process. The grieving process is personal. The grieving process may take a long time to complete or a short time to complete. The grieving process is personal. Some people will experience each phase of the process while others may experience only some phases of the process.
.
Seven phases of the grieving process
● Shock and Denial
● Pain and Guilt
● Anger and Bargaining
● Depression, Reflection & loneliness
● Upward Turn
● Reconstruction & Working Through
● Hope

Jesus’ grief revealed in Isaiah 53:
3 He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.
4 Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. 5 But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.
10 Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand. 11 He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities.

Jesus’ grief revealed in Luke 19:
37 And when he was come nigh, even now at the descent of the mount of Olives, the whole multitude of the disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works that they had seen;
38 Saying, Blessed be the King that cometh in the name of the Lord: peace in heaven, and glory in the highest.
39 And some of the Pharisees from among the multitude said unto him, Master, rebuke thy disciples.
40 And he answered and said unto them, I tell you that, if these should hold their peace, the stones would immediately cry out.
41 And when he was come near, he beheld the city, and wept over it,
42 Saying, If thou hadst known, even thou, at least in this thy day, the things which belong unto thy peace! but now they are hid from thine eyes.
43 For the days shall come upon thee, that thine enemies shall cast a trench about thee, and compass thee round, and keep thee in on every side,
44 And shall lay thee even with the ground, and thy children within thee; and they shall not leave in thee one stone upon another; because thou knewest not the time of thy visitation.

David’s thoughts – does anyone care? Psalms 56:
8Thou tellest my wanderings; Put Thou my tears into Thy bottle: Are they not in Thy book?
Psalm 31:
9 Have mercy upon me O LORD, for I am in trouble: mine eye is consumed with grief, yea, my soul and my belly.
10 For my life is spent with grief, and my years with sighing: my strength faileth because of mine iniquity, and my bones are consumed.

God’s purpose includes refining you and preparing you to live with Him in Heaven
Malachi 3:
2 But who may abide the day of his coming? and who shall stand when he appeareth? for he [is] like a refiner’s fire, and like fullers’ soap:
3 And he shall sit [as] a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the LORD an offering in righteousness.
Zechariah 13:
9 And I will bring the third part through the fire, and will refine them as silver is refined, and will try them as gold is tried: they shall call on my name, and I will hear them: I will say, It [is] my people: and they shall say, The LORD [is] my God.
Job 23:
10 But he knoweth the way that I take: [when] he hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold.
the silver smith needs to hold the silver in the middle of the fire where the flames are hottest to burn away all the impurities. The silversmith must sit there holding the silver and keep his eyes on the silver the entire time it is in the fire. If the silver is left even a moment too long in the flames, it will be destroyed. How does the silversmith know when the silver is fully refined? When he sees his image reflected in it.
2 Corinthians 1:
3 Blessed [be] God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort;
4 Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God. 5 For as the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so our consolation also aboundeth by Christ.

Helping someone who is grieving
●Open up communication – you listen, let them talk
● Allow them to feel their emotions – don’t analyze
● The grieving process takes as long as it takes – don’t judge
● Don’t fear the silence but try to be present

God’s has already revealed the ending He will bring to pass
Revelation 7:
17For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes
Revelation 21:
4And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.

How Firm a Foundation – verses 4 & 5
When through the deep waters I call thee to go,
The rivers of woe shall not thee overflow;
For I will be with thee, thy troubles to bless, And sanctify to thee thy deepest distress.

When through fiery trials thy pathways shall lie,
My grace, all sufficient, shall be thy supply;
The flame shall not hurt thee; I only design Thy dross to consume, and thy gold to refine.

Tears are a Language God Understands-author unknown
Often you wonder why tears come into your eyes
And burdens seem to be much more than you can bear
But God is standing near, He sees your falling tears
And tears are a language God understands.

God sees the tears of a brokenhearted soul
He sees your tears and hears them when they fall
God weeps along with man and He takes him by the hand
Tears are a language God understands.

When grief has left you low it causes tears to flow
When things have not turned out the way that you had planned
But God won’t forget you His promises are true
And tears are a language God understands.

God sees the tears of a brokenhearted soul-He sees your tears and hears them when they fall
God weeps along with man and He takes him by the hand
Tears are a language that my God –He understands.

God weeps along with man and He takes him by the hand
Tears are a language God understands.

Questions for Reflection
1) Am you looking at the Refiner or looking at the fire?
2) How do you see this fire affecting you?
3) How do you see this fire preparing me?
4) When was Jesus in a similar situation? What did He do?
5) Where are you in the grieving process?
Hebrews 12:
1 Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us,
2 Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.

Let us run with patience the race He has set before us, looking unto Jesus,
Coach Patti