When a loved one dies we are overcome by grief and afflicted by how awful it is, and it is terribly difficult to deal with. However, there is something more awful than that. Imagine never loving anyone enough to weep over them when they are gone. To be so cold, calloused, indifferent, and detached that we can’t weep over their demise is a horrible thought.
What a miserable life it would be to never love anyone enough to weep when they cry and grieve when they die. As someone said, “Better to have loved and lost than to have never loved at all”. Love hurts– it’s that plain and simple. Pain is the price we pay for caring, but it is not so high as the price we pay for not loving at all. Pity the person who knows not the joy of loving and being loved.
So, rather than getting angry about the agony of losing a loved one, let us be thankful that we have had the privilege and pleasure of loving another. To be able to love others is a gift that God alone can give. We love Him because He first loved us and loving Him leads to loving others. Losing them is painful, but it is far better than never having loved them at all.
No you won’t get over their loss overnight— you’re not suppose to! God has given us the ability to remember for a reason. He could blot out your recollection of a person the moment they die— your memory of them could die with them, but God didn’t make us that way. He knows the pleasure of your memories out-weighs the pain of your misery, so He enables you to bask in the sunshine of your precious memories. They give you reason to rejoice.
Besides, in the case of a Christian, you haven’t really “lost” your loved one. Death is merely a temporary separation. God’s people never meet for the last time! There is a glorious reunion day coming when all of God’s children will be gathered home– never to part again. Until then let us be cheered by God’s “exceeding great and precious promises”( 2Pet. 1:4). The best is yet to come. Weep not because you grieve, rejoice because you can. Think about it!
Note: This article is dedicated to the memory of Samuel Keen, a man who loved his country and community enough to risk his life to serve both.– Bro. Stone
