Minister’s Letter July 2019
Dear friends,
In this letter I want to explore the subject of loss and bereavement; a difficult subject but one that I think needs to be explored.
As you may know my wife died just over 2 years ago and although they say time heals, and that is true up to a point, there is not a day goes by when I do not think about her, and I miss her terribly.
I realise that I am not the only one who has lost a life-long partner, and that many people are bereaved through loss of a family member or a loved one, and my heart and prayers go out to them, and we all have different ways of coping.
I was prompted to write some thoughts on loss as I have recently joined a bereavement group, which is helpful, and recently in my work I have officiated at a number of funerals which naturally made me pause and reflect on death and what it means.
Earthquakes happen in various parts of God’s world, and in miniature, the death of a loved one can be described as a miniature emotional earthquake. That’s how I am describing loss and death. Nothing is ever normal again and your whole sense of being changes.
I have always been a fan of the Psalms and the Psalms always have a word for every occasion, and Psalm 31 says "I have become like a broken pot, but you heard my pleas, when I cried out for help, the Lord is close to those whose hearts are broken, he rescues those who are crushed in spirit”.
And when people are bereaved, you can feel crushed in spirit. Everyday someone, somewhere, finds themselves overwhelmed by a disaster, not necessarily a death, but something that upsets the equilibrium of their ordered lives. What seemed secure and safe, suddenly becomes a space that is not full of life, but emptiness and despair.
There are no easy answers at times of loss and bereavement, but I am convinced that God never wills suffering upon anyone, but that he shares in our pain and frustration, when our lives go sour, and the wheels come off our plans. I am convinced that our Lord God can and does turn our sadness into joy. He can if we let him, bring joy to our sorrow and light to our darkness, and surely, that is the message of the Gospel, that we worship a God, who is able by the power of the resurrection, to bring new life out of our old selves.
Much of what we believe remains a mystery, but like Thomas we say ‘Lord, help my unbelief’. Our faith can be tested, especially when those we love die and we can feel like as the Psalmist says, "a broken pot”, and "we can be crushed in sprit", yet through it all as Christians we hold fast to the God who knows our suffering, and what it is as human beings we go through, because he too experienced loss, rejection, sadness, but the good news is that he conquered death, death on a cross, and was resurrected to save us and the world from sin. He conquered death, for our sake, and reaches out to us all especially to those crushed in spirit by bereavement, loss, pain and despair. Our Lord’s resurrection is the good news of the Christian message and offers hope and comfort to all in need.
I began with a Psalm. I want to conclude with another. Psalm 147 verse 3 says “the Lord mends the broken in spirit and tends their wounds”. When life leaves us battered, bruised and weary like a hospital casualty, our God waits to pick us up, and sets us on our feet again ready to love, serve and do his will, to the best of our ability!!
Yours in Christ
Peter
Dear friends,
In this letter I want to explore the subject of loss and bereavement; a difficult subject but one that I think needs to be explored.
As you may know my wife died just over 2 years ago and although they say time heals, and that is true up to a point, there is not a day goes by when I do not think about her, and I miss her terribly.
I realise that I am not the only one who has lost a life-long partner, and that many people are bereaved through loss of a family member or a loved one, and my heart and prayers go out to them, and we all have different ways of coping.
I was prompted to write some thoughts on loss as I have recently joined a bereavement group, which is helpful, and recently in my work I have officiated at a number of funerals which naturally made me pause and reflect on death and what it means.
Earthquakes happen in various parts of God’s world, and in miniature, the death of a loved one can be described as a miniature emotional earthquake. That’s how I am describing loss and death. Nothing is ever normal again and your whole sense of being changes.
I have always been a fan of the Psalms and the Psalms always have a word for every occasion, and Psalm 31 says "I have become like a broken pot, but you heard my pleas, when I cried out for help, the Lord is close to those whose hearts are broken, he rescues those who are crushed in spirit”.
And when people are bereaved, you can feel crushed in spirit. Everyday someone, somewhere, finds themselves overwhelmed by a disaster, not necessarily a death, but something that upsets the equilibrium of their ordered lives. What seemed secure and safe, suddenly becomes a space that is not full of life, but emptiness and despair.
There are no easy answers at times of loss and bereavement, but I am convinced that God never wills suffering upon anyone, but that he shares in our pain and frustration, when our lives go sour, and the wheels come off our plans. I am convinced that our Lord God can and does turn our sadness into joy. He can if we let him, bring joy to our sorrow and light to our darkness, and surely, that is the message of the Gospel, that we worship a God, who is able by the power of the resurrection, to bring new life out of our old selves.
Much of what we believe remains a mystery, but like Thomas we say ‘Lord, help my unbelief’. Our faith can be tested, especially when those we love die and we can feel like as the Psalmist says, "a broken pot”, and "we can be crushed in sprit", yet through it all as Christians we hold fast to the God who knows our suffering, and what it is as human beings we go through, because he too experienced loss, rejection, sadness, but the good news is that he conquered death, death on a cross, and was resurrected to save us and the world from sin. He conquered death, for our sake, and reaches out to us all especially to those crushed in spirit by bereavement, loss, pain and despair. Our Lord’s resurrection is the good news of the Christian message and offers hope and comfort to all in need.
I began with a Psalm. I want to conclude with another. Psalm 147 verse 3 says “the Lord mends the broken in spirit and tends their wounds”. When life leaves us battered, bruised and weary like a hospital casualty, our God waits to pick us up, and sets us on our feet again ready to love, serve and do his will, to the best of our ability!!
Yours in Christ
Peter
