Praying comfort over grief

Dear God of all comfort,

You get grief. It sucks, doesn’t it?

Grief interrupts the joy of living and suffocates you. It’s like dying but knowing you will eventually come up for air, and you will not pass out. You will live through it.

You get it. You felt grief in the sharpest way possible. You were betrayed and rejected by the object of your love and sacrifice. And then you were rejected by your Father. You bore the weight of the sins of the whole world–the horrific acts of violence, cruelty, and debauchery. You felt them and You wore them as You died.

And because You know what grief is, You are the only true comforter.

So comfort us. Spread Your peace like a quilt over the shoulders of those who grieve parents, children, and the lives they hoped to live. Give each of us hope and confidence that You have a plan for us–You will prosper and keep us in Your perfect will.

Grief is just a part of Your will. It’s just not the part we wanted to experience. To understand that, give us faith. Give us a community of encouragers. Turn our gaze upward to You.

That’s what grief does. Its shoves us to the surface, gasping for air, where we see You.

Ahh! You are what we needed all along.

Thank you, Jesus. Give me Your peace.

Amen.

“He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and familiar with suffering. . . Surely, he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows.” (Isaiah 53:3-4)