It is celebration season! Graduations from kindergarten, eighth grade, high school, and college. Holidays. Weddings. Here in Colorado, we are even throwing parties simply because the temperatures rose above freezing!
Yet, with some of our recent local and national tragedies, we might not feel like celebrating. Laughter in the midst of a painful season might feel awkward or inappropriate. Do we dishonor those in pain – or those who have been lost – by gathering with friends and loved ones? The Lord has something to say about this.
There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens:
a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance,
Ecclesiastes 3:1, 4
The Lord designed us for compassion and created us with emotions. He has purpose for both. As we have compassion for those around us who are grieving, we are called to weep with them. We sit with them. We pray for them. And then we sit with them some more. In those deeply difficult times, we have a holy assignment of ministering compassion and hope to the hurting by simply being with them. Why? So they too can experience God’s hope in the midst of the unthinkable. However, it is not something that can be rushed; time is a necessary component to grief. Beware, though, that we are not designed to camp there. Grief is not the destination; it is the hallway to restored hope.
A cheerful heart is good medicine,
but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.
Proverbs 17:22
A cheerful heart can prevent prolonged grief from developing into crushing despair. Allowing ourselves to embrace times of joy – even in the midst of profound pain – is a necessary part of the grieving and healing process. “A time for everything” looks like “being fully present where we are,” and allowing the Lord’s work within us. By walking through each step rather than attempting to take the express train to the end – which, by the way, never works – we also testify to the Lord’s faithfulness through the journey. And with each step, we find ourselves surrounded by a growing number of witnesses to the Lord’s goodness!
Sarah said, “God has brought me laughter,
and everyone who hears about this will laugh with me.”
Genesis 21:6
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Our mouths were filled with laughter, our tongues with songs of joy.
Then it was said among the nations, “The Lord has done great things for them.”
Psalm 126:2
If you are in a season of difficulty – if loss is weighing heavy or grief greets you each day – please let me encourage you to shake off the misplaced guilt of welcoming joy. Embrace the moments of lament and embrace the moments of laughter. Welcome friends and family into both spaces. Go ahead and enjoy a BBQ. Allow yourself to try, and realize that the celebration might feel differently than before, but it doesn’t mean you have to skip it altogether. If you aren’t the one grieving, welcome a struggling loved one who is. Simply being in the presence of joy can give hope. Love and understanding from the happy and the heartbroken helps all of us through the hallway of grief and into restored hope. Together, we are the family of God, the God who does great things for us. And His whisper is always…
You are adored.
You Are Adored 