Lifestyle Columnist, Amanda Alexander
However, Paul the Apostle likened the sorrow we go through upon the death of a loved one to a sting. He said in 1 Corinthians 15:55 “O death, where is thy sting…?” Now Paul come on, how can you say that…this heart wrenching, gut twisting, life changing event is like being stung by those pesky insects? There has to be more to his analogy.
So far in 2023 six people I know have died, I attended four of the funerals. The grief etched on faces was deeply moving, you could see brokenness and despair were trying to overtake the individual. The emotions evidenced were not in any way comparable to an insect sting, where we may only scream the word “ouch”, and apply a quick remedy. A loved one’s home-going, transition to Heaven experience is a whole new ball game!
Argggggh, I get what Paul was alluding to! Yes, we will miss the physical presence of the person on the earth, and it’s okay to weep about that, Jesus wept on hearing the death of Lazarus his friend in Matthew 11:35. However, in the grand scheme of things, Paul understood that God was the ruler of his life, whether he was dead or alive he would be with God, hence why he was able to liken the pain of bereavement to that of a sting. Paul’s hope was in his belief that he would see his loved ones again in the air with Jesus, and the same is true for us.
Paul said in 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18, “…I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope…For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him…For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first…Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord…Wherefore comfort one another with these words”.
We are hopeful not hopeless when our loved ones leave us, we will see them again and therefore live in such hope. Like a sting where the pain is sharp and immediate at the beginning, over a period of time it decreases, that’s how we’re meant to grieve and not lose hope.
If you’re in a bereavement season, please I urge you to place your trust and hope in God to fill you with His peace, and believe that you will see your loved ones again one day…Paul encourages us in 1 Thessalonians 4:13 to comfort one another with these words, I pray that you’ve been comforted by reading these words of hope today!
So until next time, remember that you are beautiful and wonderfully made – With love Amanda x
Amanda Alexander is a Pastor, Teacher, TV Media Journalist
She’s the Founder of Female Dignity, Warrior Women. Amanda serves on the leadership team of New Life Church in Bishops Stortford and is ministry coordinator for Patrick’s Mission
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