Rescuing Together: The Importance of the Faith Community in the Midst of Grief

[Continuing our current series, we explore why being a part of a community of faith is absolutely critical if we are to grieve faithfully as Christians.]

"Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn."  Romans 12:15

     The well-known story is told of the man who found himself trapped on the roof of his house in the midst of a massive flood.  He prayed fervently to God for rescue, but as a neighbor's boat, police helicopter, and Coast Guard raft each came to him, he refused their aid, crying out instead , "The Lord will save me!" Having rejected all aid, he eventually succumbed to the floodwaters and drowned.  Standing before God in heaven, he asked dejectedly, "God, why did you not save me?" to which God replied, "What do you mean?  I sent you a boat, a helicopter, and the Coast Guard!"

      I doubt that any of us, in the midst of a flood, would mistake a Coast Guard boat or helicopter as anything but a form of rescue from God.  And yet how many of us, in the midst of grieving a loss, pray to God for comfort, provision, and peace, and yet fail to recognize our own church community as an avenue, perhaps the largest avenue, of God's answer to those prayers?

     Like the man on his roof, we reject the very things sent to save us in the flood of our grief.  We pray for comfort, but refuse to let fellow church members talk to us.  We pray for peace, but reject a minister or elder's invitation to meet.  We pray for strength, but push aside every form of outreach from our fellow Christians.  We fail to see the sheer volume of phone calls, cards, emails, and words of condolence from our Christian family as the very essence of God's response to our prayers for help.

     Grief certainly can have a blinding and numbing effect on us, especially in the first several weeks.  We can be surrounded by people expressing their sincere love for us and not feel any of it, as we stand in the foyer after the funeral.  Cards and phone calls may not really make an impact on us.  And that is somewhat inevitable- it comes with the territory.  But in time our faith in God's provision should lead us to recognize and acknowledge that all of those forms of outreach are signs of God walking with us and grieving alongside us, just as Jesus did in John 11.  

     Through His people, God honors His promise of peace and calm for our troubled hearts (John 14:27).  

     It is fellow Christians who mourn with us, reminding us that God mourns with us.  It is fellow Christians who point us back to the Word time and again, reminding us that we are not like those who have no hope (1 Thess. 4:13).  It is fellow Christians who show patience and compassion to us as we wrestle through the myriad of emotions that accompany a journey of grief, because God is a patient and compassionate God.  And it is fellow Christians who show us hospitality, pray faithfully for us, and use their unique gifts to minister to us (Romans 12), because God has called them to do so out of his own love for each of us.  

     The floodwaters of grief are strong and deep, but through the local church and all of its forms of outreach and care, God rescues us, comforts us, and provides for us.  Let us be mindful of this important theological reality.  When we ourselves are mourning, let us allow the church to minister to us in all its many forms.  When someone among us is mourning, let us fulfill our high calling in Romans 12 to minister , to show hospitality, to pray for, and to mourn with them.  In doing so, we answer the prayers of those who cry out to God for peace and comfort.