Can We Get Through It All?

Today, Queen Elizabeth was celebrated and laid to rest.  There was an abundance of scripture to encourage all present and watching by television.  In time of loss, grief is very real and many may have asked, “Can we get through it all?  I know I can relate, as many of you can, having experience grief and loss of someone. The pain of the realization of the separateness from the person or position can be very emotional and weigh heavy on our hearts.  We look for comfort and resolution of the weight of the loss in our lives.
 
Many of us can recall a song that seems to strike cord of our being, addressing what was ailing us, and the “fix” we needed. In 1971, Andrea Crouch penned such a song “Though It All” that helped us to turn our eyes to Jesus for help.  The song was a strong force of support sung in churches across the US and world by soloist, adult and youth choirs.  Andrea Crouch sang the song in many venues including a Billy Graham crusade in New Mexico in 1975 along with giving his testimony.
 
C. Michael Hawn in an article on History of Hymns: Through It All (March 17,2021) discussed the autobiography written by Mr. Crouch (1945-2015) with Nina Ball in 1974.  Each chapter of the book highlights one of Mr. Crouch’s songs.  The first chapter is about “Through It All”. Mr. Hawn highlighted a portion of Mr. Crouch’s first chapter, which appeared to be a “commentary” on the stanzas of the song.
 
“The hardest thing about always being on the go is leaving your home, your local community, the relatives and friends you see every day to suddenly open up your life to everybody all over the world. You become involved with more and more people and there is so much heartache it can break you. I had to learn to rely totally on the Lord. Totally.
But God sends the mountains. . . to lift us up from the valleys. . ., and He gives us strength to travel through it all—through the up times and through the down times. I just thank Him for everything, all the tears—tears of sorrow, tears of joy—for the problems, and the trust, the faith, His Word, His Holy Spirit, and for Jesus. Through it all He brings a blessed harmony to life. Knowing Him, belonging to Him, is enough. Praise His name (Crouch, 1974, p. 17).”
 
What a beautiful commentary of the song Mr. Crouch wrote and the heart from which it flowed. For so many of us, we have been on the mountains and in the valleys. We have had tears (and I mean a lot of tears) both of sorrow and joy.  Mr. Couch connects the problem to trust, faith, His Word, His Holy Spirit and Jesus.  This is a helpful summation of where we can go with the tears.
 
However, I want to expand this thought to call what many of us experience with loss as “grief”.  Some may think that term is only to be used in the loss of a love one however, we can have grief in many areas such as divorce, and loss of employment, natural disasters and the list can go on.  In discussion of grief, whether by a therapist, chaplain, layperson or someone familiar with grief, the Kubler-Ross model of grief is usually used in discussing 5 primary responses to loss.
 
Denial: “This can’t be happening”
Anger: “Why is this happening to me?”
Bargaining: “I will do anything to change this.”
Depression: “What’s the point of going on after this loss?”
Acceptance: “It’s going to be okay.” 
 
You would be the exception if you have not experienced grief about an event in your life.  When the loss happens, it is hard to accept and we may even be in a period of denial.  Love ones or professionals should be honest about the loss to help with this stage of grief. 
 
Upon grasping the loss, anger may appear.  The individual may be angry with themselves or others.  Life feels unfair and someone else is to blame.
 
An individual may feel they can delay or change the loss by bargaining. Some of us may have tried bargaining with God to spare our love one’s life.  We beg the partner to not leave or demand treatment for a terminal condition.
 
When we realize that the loss has happened or will occur, we may want to be by ourselves, crying and grieving. The individual acknowledges the loss and depression happens before acceptance.
 
In the final stage, the person accepts the loss. Both emotionally and logically, the person comes to term with the situation.
 
We all grieve differently.  We need to give each other space, time and guard our judgment of how someone grieves.  Some are quick to process through the stages and some may feel “stuck” in one of the stages. When it becomes overwhelming and impacts the person’s life for years (complicated grief), the person may need professional intervention to work out all of the emotions, thoughts and impact about the loss.
 
Grief is a normal process and varies for individuals, cultures, people and situations.
 
Intervention by a professional is not always needed.
 
A very small percentage of people have complicated grief, which can be treated by a therapist.
 
How can we minister to someone who is experiencing grief?  Listen, be present if they allow, physical touch if they are open such as a hug, holding a hand or an arm around their shoulder.  See to their physical needs such as drink, food, and assistance with home duties or errands. Provide a list of scripture with the location and verses printed.
 
Can we get through it all?  All of the grief we are bearing, feeling lost and without hope?  Yes, we can through God’s help and others that God brings to us to comfort and encourage us.  We can cling to scripture, the anchor of truth.
 
Psalm 23:4 "Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me."
 
Romans 15:3 "May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope."
 
John 11:25-26 "Jesus said to her, 'I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me will live, even though they die. Everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?"
 
Lamentations 3:31-32   For no one is cast off by the Lord forever. Though he brings grief, he will show compassion,
so great is his unfailing love.
 
Through It All
I've had many tears and sorrows,
I've had questions for tomorrow,
there's been times I didn't know right from wrong.
But in every situation,
God gave me blessed consulation,
that my trials come to only make me strong.
Through it all,
through it all,
I've learned to trust in Jesus,
I've learned to trust in God.
Through it all,
through it all,
I've learned to depend upon His Word.
I've been to lots of places,
I've seen a lot of faces,
there's been times I felt so all alone.
But in my lonely hours,
yes, those precious lonely hours,
Jesus lets me know that I was His own
Through it all,
through it all,
I've learned to trust in Jesus,
I've learned to trust in God.
I thank God for the mountains,
and I thank Him for the valleys,
I thank Him for the storms He brought me through.
For if I'd never had a problem,
I wouldn't know God could solve them,
I'd never know what faith in God could do