Identifying the Problem:

There is a saying in this world ... "knowing what the problem is, is half the battle."  Once we realize what is wrong, we can then correct it. This is true with grief and/or depression, as well. 

In our society today, we seem to have adopted an unfounded, unBiblical supposition about grief ... and that is that it only occurs at the death of a loved one. While grief does naturally and normally occur at the at that time, it is simply not true that death is the only cause of grief.  In this day and age, there are probably as many causes of grief as there are negative happenings to experience and people to experience them.

Symptoms and Stages:

Grief and depression can erupt in our lives in many different forms, and to varying degrees. Not all of them are experienced by each one who grieves. It is important to know also that a person can revert back and forth between symptoms.  In addition, people from various places and cultures around the world, can experience grief and/or depression differently. Symptoms may emerge in the physical, mental, emotional and spiritual realms. 

As with symptoms, the stages of grief and depression can manifest in different forms and varying degrees. It should also be noted that the loved ones of the person immediately affected by the rauma, can also experience the symptoms and stages of grief, and also in varying degrees. 

What Hope Is, and What it is Not:

Hope is a firm assurance of things that are unseen and still in the future.  Hope is real. It's a powerful spiritual force that the Bible calls the "anchor" of our soul (Hebrews 6: 19), and it can cause us to make decisions which can direct the very course of our lives.Hope is also a choice.  It's an option. We don't have to respond to hope, but we can if we choose to.

Hope is not wishful thinking. Wishful thinking can feel very real, but it is possible that the wish is not based upon truth. Wishful thinking can even sometimes go so far as to deny reality, and denying reality can keep us in bondage to the situation for a longer period of time.

Hope is also not manipulating God's Word to line up with what we want. 

In discussing any problem, the focus of attention should eventually gravitate towards the solution, rather than remaining on the problem.  In the discussion of grief and depression, hope is the beginning of the solution.

Choosing hope helps create possibilities and alternatives, thereby helping to create change. Choosing hope can even help us learn to accept what cannot be changed, which in itself is a change for the better. The amount of hope we have directly affects our capacity for change and healing.

 

A wise man is strong; yea a man of knowledge increaseth strength.

Proverbs 24.5

The Pathway to Healing:

Learning about grief and depression and how it affects you mentally, emotionally, physically and spiritually, can give you the tools and the ammunition to win the battle and overcome these difficult days. 

The first step is in realizing and admitting that a problem exists.  Denial of its existence will keep us further away from healing than the trauma did in the first place.

Since the transformation before us is impossible through human strength alone, it would be wise to realize that we must begin to develop a perspective from the standpoint of truth ... God's standpoint ... in order to overcome grief.  

The response of faith is a good place to start. Ask the Lord to increase your faith so that you can begin to believe for and appropriate His healing.He has all the answers. He knows what you have need of. So just ask Him. As you are fighting for your healing, realize that God is fighting with you, and begin to work with Him.



Recurring Symptoms:

I see overcoming grief as being similar to the waves of an ocean. When they crash against the shore, it hurts! But then the tide ebbs, and for the moment, the pain is not quite as severe. But just about the time you think it's all going to be ok, here comes another "wave." And it crashes! And brings pain once again. 

But don't give up!

Somewhere along the pathway to healing, you begin to notice that the "waves" are not crashing quite so hard. And there's just a little bit more time before they come again. It's during these times that you can replace those painful feelings with positive thoughts and memories.

That's how healing begins!

The Power of Choice:

The Lord has given us an awesome power ... it's called choice. We have the incredible power, even in the midst of grief or depression, to choose what direction our life will head in. Jesus once gave a lame man sitting by a pool of water, a choice. Jesus told this lame man to take up his pallet and walk. At that point, the lame man had a choice to make ... would he believe in the "reality" of his physical situation? Or would he believe the "truth" of the words spoken by the One who stood before him?

We do not have control over every situation or circumstance that affects our lives. But through this awesome give that the Lord has given us ... the power of choice ... we can decide how we will react to that situation or circumstance! The lame man chose to believe the One who stood before him. Something in His voice ... something in His countenance ... something about this Man ... was powerful. And believeable. And the man who had been lame from birth, took up his pallet. And for the first time in his life, he walked!

Our lives get busy, or familiar, or anything else that keeps us from believing. But today ... right now ... you have that same awesome power of choice that the lame man had. You can choose to believe that there is hope and healing. You can choose to allow God to begin the process of healing. And you can choose to work with Him, and to let Him walk with you and guide you along the way.

                                   Hope!        Faith!       Perseverance!

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