“Don’t think I am a wicked woman! For I have been praying out of great anguish and sorrow.” (1 Samuel 1:16 NLT)
Hannah was terribly sad about the children that never had been. Eli, the high priest, accused her of being drunk. Hannah blurted out her true trouble and in the very next sentence begged not to be labeled as ‘wicked.’ I wonder, was wickedness associated with sadness?
Drunkenness is definitely bad biblical behavior. Scripture is clear on that in multiple places, but specifically read through Proverbs 23:20-30. Even still, it seems like drunkenness is more socially acceptable than grief.
Hannah’s response got me thinking about how poorly our society deals with grieving people. Have we somehow labeled grief as bad behavior, like drunkenness?
Grief is amoral, meaning it’s neither good nor bad. It simply is. Grief exists when loss occurs and loss is a continuing factor in the human condition.
That being said, it’s what we do with grief that can become good or bad. When we allow grief to drive us further into ugly behavior, it becomes destructive. If we allow grief to drown out the person we were were created to be, it can lead us into wickedness. We can cease to live altogether.
On the other hand, we can leverage grief for good. We can, as Hanna did, let our anguish push us into the throne room of God. We can let grief grow our persistence in prayer. We can be motivated by our loss – informing or influencing others. We can organize or contribute to projects like MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Driving) or Stephen Ministries. Our sorrow takes on meaning when we help others. When I think about my own journey through grief, I think of Levi and Jennie Lusko and their vulnerability with their five year old daughter’s death. I highly recommend his book – Through the Eyes of a Lion or hers – The Fight to Flourish. The Luskos do an excellent job of repurposing their pain for Kingdom benefit.
Hannah dealt with her grief well. She took it straight to God and together they worked through it. The Kingdom was built up by her right handling of sorrow. I wonder, what might God want to accomplish through your grief? Have you had the courage to ask Him?
“All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is our merciful Father and the source of all our comfort. He comforts us in all our troubles so that we may can give comfort to others. When they are troubled, we will give them the same comfort God has given us. For the more we suffer for Christ, the more God will shower us with His comfort through Christ.”
(2 Corinthians 1:3-5 NLT)
Lord, we hate loss. We realize though, that grief is amoral: neither good nor bad. It is our response to grief that has such potential to harm or edify. Help us choose You amidst our losses. May we come close when we don’t understand, when it hurts too much to breathe. Somehow, supernatural leverage our grief for Kingdom benefit. Comfort us so we can comfort others. Amen.
*Today’s post is dedicated to my dad, John Klapp. He would have been 75 today. Instead, he’s celebrating another birthday in heaven with my mom and my Savior. <3
