Perhaps social media has increased our awareness, but chances are you or someone you know is enduring a season of grief right now: the death of a loved one, friend, neighbor or coworker.
Loss always produces grief. There is no escaping it. If you try to deny it or postpone it, it will only gather force and become more debilitating the longer you try to suppress it. That is one reason prayer is an indispensable resource for a grieving heart. While intelligible prayer may seem impossible in the early days of a deep loss, one or more of the following prayers may become helpful as the shock begins to subside:
1) Pour out your grief.
“Be merciful to me, Lord, for I am in distress; my eyes grow weak with sorrow, my soul and body with grief” (Psalm 31:9, NIV). My heart is broken, my mind exhausted. I cry out to you and hardly know what to ask. All I can do is tell you how I feel and ask you to “keep track of all my sorrows. . . . all my tears in your bottle. . . . each one in your book” as I pour them out to you (Psalm 56:8, NLT). Amen.
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2) Ask for comfort.
Jesus, You said, “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted” (Matthew 5:4, NIV). I am mourning; send me Your comfort now. Wrap around Your arms around me and hold me tight. Send angels of mercy to me. Shower Your comfort on me through those around me, and keep far from me those whose words and actions are no comfort. Amen.
3) Ask for healing.
O God, come to my assistance; O Lord, hurry to help me. Please take the consuming anguish I feel right now; take it from me and hold me in Your arms. Heal my broken heart and bind up my wounds (see Psalm 147:3). Amen.
4) Ask for peace.
Jesus, You told Your followers, “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe in Me as well. . . . Peace I leave with you; My peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives” (John 14:1, 27, NIV). I need Your peace. I need “the peace of God, which transcends all understanding” to guard my heart and mind (Philippians 4:7, NIV). I need peaceful sleep. I ask for peaceful thoughts and emotions to rule my days and nights. Amen.
Read More: The Garden That Healed Our Grief
5) Ask for hope.
Lord, the Bible says You are “close to the brokenhearted and those whose spirits are crushed” (Psalm 34:18, NLT). Draw close to me and rescue me. Help me not to grieve like those who haven’t discovered Your kindness and mercy, who have no hope (see 1 Thessalonians 4:13); lift me up and give me hope once more. Help me to believe that tomorrow will be better, and the next day will be easier, and that a day will come when I will feel a surge of energy and expectation for what You are doing and where You will take me. Amen.
As the prayers above suggest, you may find special comfort in reading and praying the Psalms during a season of grief. They can help you take the time to grieve well and to pray as much as you are able.
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A Thanksgiving Prayer for Grieving Families
Dear Father who art in Heaven…
Please join our family on this Thanksgiving day
And bless each one as we sit down to pray
As we remember those who have joined You above
So dearly missed and deeply loved.
Please provide us strength on this Thanksgiving day
Bless us with memories of those faraway…
Please grant patience to family and friends as we grieve
And help us reach out to others who are bereaved.
We give thanks to You on this Thanksgiving day….
For Your presence in our lives each and everyday.
For Your comfort, guidance, and never ending love…
And for taking care of our loved ones…in Heaven above.
As we light this candle on this Thanksgiving day…
And it glows in memory of those in Heaven today….
May their lights always shine down on us and give us light…
And may we feel their presence along with Yours tonight.
May the peace and tranquility of this Thanksgiving day
Be an everlasting light within each of us along the way…
Lets bow our heads and give our Thanks to God above..
For our blessings, whether on earth or in Heaven above…
Amen.
Wishing You Comfort & Peace along the “journey”,
John-Danielle Marie’s Daddy
1/4/95-2/20/06 (head trauma-motor vehicle accident)
http://danielle-marie-plourde.memory-of.com/In Loving Memory Of Danielle-Marie
“Her friendship was an inspiration, her love a blessing”
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A Prayer for the Grieving Heart
By: Jennifer O. White
“But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words.” ->Romans 8:26b (NLT).
Our world has been shaken. My husband’s older brother and only sibling, Ken, dropped dead in his bathroom. We still don’t know why. While we wait on autopsy results, we shake our heads in disbelief at how someone who appeared to be the picture of health could just die so suddenly.
My husband and I, his parents, his children, extended family and many friends are all flooded with grief. We have great joy in knowing Ken is with Jesus enjoying the best days of his eternal life. We celebrate our hope of joining him there. Meanwhile we miss him greatly.
If you are experiencing a grief like this, take this prayer to a quiet place, light a candle or two, and let your soul speak to the One who always hears his children’s tears.
A Prayer for the Grieving Heart
You are Immanuel, God with me. Thank You for being with me now as I mourn this loss. You are the God of all Comfort and I willingly receive Your comfort now. I do not know what Your comfort will look like or feel like, but I trust it even so.
My heart is broken but You are near. My spirit is crushed, but You are my rescuer. Your Word is my hope. It revives me and comforts me in especially now. My soul faints, but you are the breath of life within me. You are my help, the One who sustains me. I am weak but You are strong. You bless those who mourn, and I trust You to bless me and my family with all that we need. You will rescue me from this dark cloud of despair because You delight in me. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Editor’s Note: Portions of this devotional were taken from Jennifer White’s article, 4 Simple Prayers for the Grieving Heart. You can read that piece in full here.
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