Kelly's Day: Pity Parties vs. Grief

 Please hit Play below before reading on. This song was given to me to listen to during the time in which we were dealing with my husband's brain tumor, and I found it inspiring and encouraging:

It's so easy...EASY...to throw pity parties during a fast like this. Especially when I walked by the roaster chicken section at Publix this afternoon, but I started out my day scrolling through FB, and I'm glad I did. That's exactly how "holy" I am. Some people started their day out reading the Bible. I started out on FB. Just being real here. My perspective was thrown into the realm of holy, and the day has followed suit. See, I met a family this soccer season (Their son is now on my son's team). They lost their beautiful high school daughter to cancer last year this day. Their faith is unwavering. Their relationship is so sweet. Their son on our team is such a good guy. They inspire me.

I didn't know them last year. I wasn't able to walk with them through the battle, but if I'm called to row through the waves of grief that will come, I will (no one has ever blamed me for being too loyal).

See, Christians who fight cancer never lose. 

They MIGHT lose the battle, OH, but they WIN the WAR!

Because, through Jesus, DEATH HAS BEEN SWALLOWED UP IN VICTORY!

One thing that I cannot wrap my head around is loss. Children lose a parent. Children are orphaned. There is hunger across the globe. There is thirst and a lack of clean water. Women miscarry. Babies are born still. I can compute a lot of this. But, for a parent to lose a child...I cannot compute. In that desperation, I look to Jesus.  He claims to be the Author and Perfecter of faith, and since I believe He is who He says He is, I KNOW His plan for me is perfect. Because of that, I KNOW I can trust this plan. I KNOW BETTER is coming! I KNOW HOLY is coming! I KNOW a time where there is NO MORE DEATH OR MOURNING OR CRYING OR PAIN is coming! I KNOW we who believe in Jesus and His resurrection claim VICTORY over death! I KNOW He is on His throne "making EVERYTHING new." HE is the BEGINNING and the END, and, He tells us this:

"To him who is thirsty I will give to drink without cost from the spring of the water of life. He who overcomes will inherit all this, and I will be his God and he will be my son." ~Revelation 21: 6,7

Amen. Come, Lord Jesus.