Loving After Loss
By Dawn Mast
The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners. Isaiah 61:1 NIV
The ultrasound technician had a serious look on her face and the room became very quiet. She turned the screen away and solemnly told us there was no heartbeat for our baby. No life. Nothing but stillness. We wouldn't be meeting or loving our precious child here on earth.
In the weeks that followed, several friends announced their pregnancies and one even went the extra mile to be expecting twins. It all felt like systematic, bad timing and I was not impressed.
Why was everyone plotting to hurt me?
How could they announce their happiness about babies in my presence?
What about my pain?!
It wasn't fair how badly I hurt and how happy everyone around me seemed to be!
There was no point to all my suffering!
Many years later, my pain greatly diminished and the Lord saw fit to give us two other sweet babies to love. But He has also shown me that there was a purpose for my pain.
Just a few years after welcoming our last child, I was able to walk alongside someone who was experiencing the same loss that we did. Because I plowed through the pain and sat in the depth of grief, I was at a place where I could empathize with a sweet sister as she waded through feelings of hopelessness and loss.
It is emotionally arduous to watch others love and be happy when you are suffering. However, the Lord will be faithful and bring you peace, hope and comfort when you need it most. Then you will be able to give comfort to someone else in need.
When we are feeling hopeless and at our lowest, it's usually not the time we feel like reaching out to others. But helping those who need to be loved, and need to know the love of the Lord, is what we are called to do even when we don't feel like doing it.
It's helpful to know that the Lord sees our needs and He will supply them abundantly and faithfully. One day, it will be our turn to encourage and support someone who is hurting. We just need to be faithful and trust that His plan will see us through our time of pain.
Father God, please see my heart and know that I want to love like You do. Sometimes it's so hard when I'm wounded or struggling so deeply with issues of my own. Thank You for Your Grace; that You allow me to rest in You and that You know I desire to be obedient. Amen.
For more encouragement, visit Dawn at thatdawnedonme.wordpress.com.
© 2021 by Dawn Mast. All rights reserved.
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