The Life Recovery Workbook for Grief - Flipbook - Page 7
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ST EP O NE
I lost a sense of familiarity with where I lived, and I lost a circle
of friends.
When we look at how people grieved in the Bible, they had
certain rituals and behaviors that they followed. Perhaps that
mitigated some of the powerlessness they were feeling. For
example, when someone died, those who were mourning tore
their clothes and put on burlap. Sometimes they shaved their
heads, or they threw ashes on themselves. It’s almost as if they
felt like they had to do something in the midst of their grief to
avoid the feeling of powerlessness.
The account of Job’s suffering teaches us some important
things about grief. When Job received word that all of his animals were gone, that his sons and daughters were all dead, that
all his sheep and the shepherds were gone, that all his camels
were gone, and that all of his servants were killed, the Bible says
that Job “stood up and tore his robe in grief. Then he shaved
his head and fell to the ground to worship” ( Job 1:20). Job
responded, “I came naked from my mother’s womb, and I will
be naked when I leave. The Lord gave me what I had, and the
Lord has taken it away. Praise the name of the Lord” ( Job 1:21).
It’s interesting that in his grief Job also worshiped—he stayed
connected to God.
Job had to acknowledge his powerlessness because everything had already happened by the time he heard, and there
was nothing he could do. All his cattle were gone, his servants
were gone, all his children were gone, and all of his wealth was
gone. There was nothing he could do about any of it!
But he had friends, and three of them came to comfort and
console him. He wasn’t going to be alone. The three friends
sat in silence with him, which was the perfect response. When
you’re grieving, you don’t want a lot of conversation. The passage says, “They sat on the ground with him for seven days and
nights. No one said a word to Job, for they saw that his suffering was too great for words” ( Job 2:13). Then Job spoke, and the
silence was broken.
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