Facing Grief, Illness, and Loss

A Three-Pronged Approach to Ministering to Grieving People

by | December 24, 2018 | Facing Grief, Illness, and Loss | 0 Comments

 “Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep.” Romans 12:15 (ESV) When ministering to someone who is grieving, please don’t be like Job’s friends. They were full of good advice, counsel, and were well-meaning. If you know the story you know that, in the...
Read More

Sola Scriptura and Biblical Counseling

by | December 24, 2018 | Facing Grief, Illness, and Loss | 0 Comments

There are times in life where what you believe is tested by what you experience. If you believe the Bible is true, it is not too much later you will come across something or someone who calls that into question. We are used to people outside the Christian community...
Read More

Being the Friend Who Cares For the Lonely and Grieving

by | December 24, 2018 | Facing Grief, Illness, and Loss | 0 Comments

Loneliness and grief are deeply personal subjects that affect everyone. In high school, I remember before my parent's divorce sitting on the upstairs stairs in our house, in the Greater Seattle area listening to my parents’ argue, and being deeply affected with grief...
Read More

The Gift of Lament

“Be pleased, O LORD, to deliver me! O LORD, make haste to help me!”[i] “In my distress I called...

How to Deal with Grief

Grief is a strange thing. Months, even years after a loss, it can show up unexpectedly. About...

Recommended Reading on Grief, Illness, and Loss

Recommended Reading on Grief, Illness, and Loss

In this issue of Theology for Life Magazine, we’ve been considering loss, grief, illness, and how by growing in our understanding of the grace of God, we can then walk with others who are dealing with these challenging events or seasons. We understand that we haven’t...

Seven Practical Things You Can Do for People Who are Grieving

Seven Practical Things You Can Do for People Who are Grieving

Let’s talk for a minute about the things someone can do for one who is grieving. The list below isn’t exhaustive—there are only 7 things—but it is meant to give us all a starting point. Hopefully these 7 things will be helpful to you in your relationships, whether you...

Living With Hurt

Living With Hurt

From my perspective as a pastor, it seems like churches go through seasons of crises. One year it’s marital problems, and it seems like every marriage is falling apart. The next year its illness and death, and it seems like every family is suffering loss. Other times...

Death, the Last Enemy

Death, the Last Enemy

Have you ever seen a bulldozer clearing a field for new construction? The grass, the little saplings, and even the larger trees—all fall equally and inexorably prey to the power of the one who is making the area conform to his vision, to his plan. The feeble plants do...

A Cold Night in January

A Cold Night in January

It was a cold night in the first week of January. Out in the country, so far removed from the majority of civilization, it seemed unfathomable that so terrible a thing could happen. But it did. The next day, news crews would attempt to stoically report on what would...

Advice for Those Helping the Hurting

Advice for Those Helping the Hurting

The biggest piece of advice I have for caregivers is that it’s okay to grieve your loss in someone else’s pain. In fact, you should grieve. Your hurting friend or family member is not the only one who has experienced loss. I’ve lost much of the use of both of my arms,...