There was no amount of journaling, reading scripture, or praying that could have prepared me for the traumatic event my life encountered years ago. The loss that overtook my soul was almost unbearable. There was nothing that could help my humanness understand this grief.
There are so many ways those two overtake us — grief and loss — for me it was hair loss. For you maybe it’s divorce, sickness, unemployment, a death, a tragic event, or even having your dreams crushed.
Lamentations is a great book to read when you find yourself experiencing grief from a situation you’ve just been through. It’s comforting to see writers in scripture wrestle down their questions and doubts. Being honest with God and mourning the way your life took a turn you weren’t prepared for is not disrespectful to God. Rather, it’s acceptable and freeing. God can handle our rawness and broken heart.
If you’re struggling or have been through a traumatic event, I’ll challenge you to take two steps:
First, read the book of Lamentations. You’ll notice right there in the middle of this gut-wrenching dirge is the antidote you can hang on to til brighter days come — YET I STILL DARE TO HOPE. (Lam 3:22) Despite my shattering, I dared to hope in a faithful god whose mercies were unending.
Second, you need to read my new book, a memoir, CRUSHED (#1 Amazon New Release). From the first page, you’ll soon realize that you are not alone in your fear, anger, and doubt. You’ll read how I struggled with all the emotions in hard truthful ways, but I kept running back to God to wrestle it out. And writing my own lament following Jeremiah’s dirge in Lamentations helped reconcile some of my feelings.
Wrestling with God is not pretty.
It is not easy. It is hard work. But it’s the only way to understand His mercies when you’ve been spun through an unimaginable crushing cycle.
If you’ve been CRUSHED, don’t delay taking steps for your physical, emotional, and spiritual healing.