Day 318 - Help Is Through the Church

365 daily emails to help you through the grieving process Grief support groups: Click here to find a GriefShare group near you. If you would like to find a group for a friend or relative, try our Search Page. Want to read ahead or resend a previous daily email? Click Here Help Is Through the Church Day 318 Open your mind to the idea that help can be given through people in a church. "If you're not a Christian, give it a try," suggests Jan Northington. "Come to church. Find out who this God is and what Jesus can be for you. I think it's a place where you'll find warmth, understanding, and encouragement, even if you are a little undecided as to whether you want to make this kind of commitment. Church is a place to start, and it's a place to find love and acceptance and help. That's what you need right now." The church has valuable spiritual and emotional resources, beyond what you might realize. Give your local body of believers a chance to help you. "After all, no one ever hated his own body, but he feeds and cares for it, just as Christ does the church" (Ephesians 5:29). Christ Jesus, You are the head of the church, and by Your example the people in the church love and care for those in their community. I would like to get to know these people. Amen. Grieving with Hope This GriefShare-based book contains short, topical chapters addressing issues that grieving people face but are often hesitant to mention to others; it gently guides people to determine whether they're grieving in a way that leads to hope and ultimate healing. Look for Grieving with Hope by Samuel Hodges and Kathy Leonard at a local or online bookstore or at griefshare.org/hope. If you would like to recommend these daily emails to a friend, please click here and choose one of the options under Share. For more information about GriefShare, including how to sign up for these daily emails, please click here. All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved. Copyright © 2003-2013 by The Church Initiative, Inc., All rights reserved. No part of this material may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without explicit permission in writing from Church Initiative. You subscribed to this daily email through www.griefshare.org. We value your privacy! We will never give, sell, rent, or otherwise share your email or personal information with any other organization — EVER. To remove this email address from further mailings Click Here while connected to the internet. If you have any problems or concerns, please contact dailyemailsupport@griefshare.org. GriefShare 250 S. Allen Rd. Wake Forest, NC 27587 (800) 395-5755

Day 317 - Emotional Intensive Care

365 daily emails to help you through the grieving process Grief support groups: Click here to find a GriefShare group near you. If you would like to find a group for a friend or relative, try our Search Page. Want to read ahead or resend a previous daily email? Click Here Emotional Intensive Care Day 317 You may feel that emotionally you need critical care. Seek help from a Christian church. The church is a place that welcomes hurting people. Remember, no church congregation is perfect. You may have been let down by the church recently or in the past. Yes, the church is filled with imperfect people, but the church is also filled with people who are trying to love more deeply and trying to live the kind of life that God has called them to. "It's just like your emotions are going into intensive care. What can you do?" says Sylvia of the loss of her parents. Let yourself be loved. "The entire law is summed up in a single command: 'Love your neighbor as yourself'" (Galatians 5:14). Lord, I want to be loved. I need to be loved. Amen. Through a Season of Grief The daily email messages you are receiving are also available in a book format. Purchase as a gift for a friend or buy a print copy for yourself. Through a Season of Grief by Bill Dunn and Kathy Leonard is available at online and local bookstores or at griefshare.org/devotional. If you would like to recommend these daily emails to a friend, please click here and choose one of the options under Share. For more information about GriefShare, including how to sign up for these daily emails, please click here. All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved. Copyright © 2003-2013 by The Church Initiative, Inc., All rights reserved. No part of this material may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without explicit permission in writing from Church Initiative. You subscribed to this daily email through www.griefshare.org. We value your privacy! We will never give, sell, rent, or otherwise share your email or personal information with any other organization — EVER. To remove this email address from further mailings Click Here while connected to the internet. If you have any problems or concerns, please contact dailyemailsupport@griefshare.org. GriefShare 250 S. Allen Rd. Wake Forest, NC 27587 (800) 395-5755

Day 316 - God's Spiritual Hospital

365 daily emails to help you through the grieving process Grief support groups: Click here to find a GriefShare group near you. If you would like to find a group for a friend or relative, try our Search Page. Want to read ahead or resend a previous daily email? Click Here God’s Spiritual Hospital Day 316 "I view the church as a hospital," says Dr. H. Norman Wright. "Invite the people in who are struggling, who are hurting." The church is not just a place for whole and healthy people to attend. When you are hurting and in need, the church is the community where you can find help. Whether you need immediate treatment or long-term care, God has designed the church to minister to your needs. Dr. Larry Crabb says, "In the field of the soul there are no professional surgeons; there are only caring Christians. I think that's a critical thing for us to realize." People in the church will enable you, through their love, to move forward on your journey. They may not know the exact words to say, and their timing will not always be right, but be assured that they love you because they love the Lord. "Dear friend, you are faithful in what you are doing for the brothers, even though they are strangers to you. They have told the church about your love. You will do well to send them on their way in a manner worthy of God" (3 John 1:5-6). Lord God, it is time for me to visit your hospital—the church. Guide me to a church that will welcome me with open arms, and give me the courage to speak up and not hide in the back. Amen. Grieving with Hope This GriefShare-based book contains short, topical chapters addressing issues that grieving people face but are often hesitant to mention to others; it gently guides people to determine whether they're grieving in a way that leads to hope and ultimate healing. Look for Grieving with Hope by Samuel Hodges and Kathy Leonard at a local or online bookstore or at griefshare.org/hope. If you would like to recommend these daily emails to a friend, please click here and choose one of the options under Share. For more information about GriefShare, including how to sign up for these daily emails, please click here. All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved. Copyright © 2003-2013 by The Church Initiative, Inc., All rights reserved. No part of this material may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without explicit permission in writing from Church Initiative. You subscribed to this daily email through www.griefshare.org. We value your privacy! We will never give, sell, rent, or otherwise share your email or personal information with any other organization — EVER. To remove this email address from further mailings Click Here while connected to the internet. If you have any problems or concerns, please contact dailyemailsupport@griefshare.org. GriefShare 250 S. Allen Rd. Wake Forest, NC 27587 (800) 395-5755

Day 315 - It's Your Move

365 daily emails to help you through the grieving process Grief support groups: Click here to find a GriefShare group near you. If you would like to find a group for a friend or relative, try our Search Page. Want to read ahead or resend a previous daily email? Click Here It’s Your Move Day 315 It's hard to take responsibility when so many areas of your life seem out of control. But if you can't manage your life, how can you be answerable for it? It is true that you cannot control what emotions you will feel or how certain events come to pass, but you need to be responsible for how you handle your own circumstances. As Dr. Norman Peart says, "God is in control. He has not left the scene. He has not left the control panels, and He is going to work it all out for His glory. At the same time, that means that there are some responsibilities we have." Part of moving on is to figure out where your responsibilities lie. The biblical answer to this question is to start right where you are. What were your areas of service and responsibility before you lost your loved one? You don't need to jump into them all at once, but they will be your beginning point. "Brothers, each man, as responsible to God, should remain in the situation God called him to" (1 Corinthians 7:24). Lord, show me where you have called me to serve. Help me to begin so I can take responsibility and move on. Amen. Through a Season of Grief The daily email messages you are receiving are also available in a book format. Purchase as a gift for a friend or buy a print copy for yourself. Through a Season of Grief by Bill Dunn and Kathy Leonard is available at online and local bookstores or at griefshare.org/devotional. If you would like to recommend these daily emails to a friend, please click here and choose one of the options under Share. For more information about GriefShare, including how to sign up for these daily emails, please click here. All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved. Copyright © 2003-2013 by The Church Initiative, Inc., All rights reserved. No part of this material may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without explicit permission in writing from Church Initiative. You subscribed to this daily email through www.griefshare.org. We value your privacy! We will never give, sell, rent, or otherwise share your email or personal information with any other organization — EVER. To remove this email address from further mailings Click Here while connected to the internet. If you have any problems or concerns, please contact dailyemailsupport@griefshare.org. GriefShare 250 S. Allen Rd. Wake Forest, NC 27587 (800) 395-5755

Day 314 - Adding Variety to Your Life

365 daily emails to help you through the grieving process Grief support groups: Click here to find a GriefShare group near you. If you would like to find a group for a friend or relative, try our Search Page. Want to read ahead or resend a previous daily email? Click Here Adding Variety to Your Life Day 314 Don't just use one resource for recovery—use several. We have mentioned a number of tools to aid in your grief recovery: a journal, sharing, humor, pets, diet, exercise, the Bible. These tools require work and effort, and they will all help you in some respect. Incorporating a variety of resources will keep you from getting in a rut that would otherwise inhibit your progress toward healing. Dr. Jim Conway explains it this way: "The process of adjusting to grief is the process of working through these things by talking to people. You also need the music dimension. You need to be spending time in the Scriptures, especially the Psalms and the Proverbs, letting God reach in there and massage your heart. "You need to spend time praying and reading your Bible. It's important to have that quiet reflection with God. You also need to think through your diet. Don't just eat junk food; force yourself to eat a balanced diet. Additionally, physical exercise drops off, so work at the whole physical component. Also, think about getting into other kinds of groups. If you're only in grief groups, you're only hanging out with grieving people. Join a standard Bible study group with people who are not grieving, but don't get into singles groups; you're not ready for that yet." Think about what has worked well for you on your healing journey. What new tools can you try out? "Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him" (Colossians 3:16-17). One thing is clear, Lord: I've got to do something! Grieving with Hope This GriefShare-based book contains short, topical chapters addressing issues that grieving people face but are often hesitant to mention to others; it gently guides people to determine whether they're grieving in a way that leads to hope and ultimate healing. Look for Grieving with Hope by Samuel Hodges and Kathy Leonard at a local or online bookstore or at griefshare.org/hope. If you would like to recommend these daily emails to a friend, please click here and choose one of the options under Share. For more information about GriefShare, including how to sign up for these daily emails, please click here. All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved. Copyright © 2003-2013 by The Church Initiative, Inc., All rights reserved. No part of this material may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without explicit permission in writing from Church Initiative. You subscribed to this daily email through www.griefshare.org. We value your privacy! We will never give, sell, rent, or otherwise share your email or personal information with any other organization — EVER. To remove this email address from further mailings Click Here while connected to the internet. If you have any problems or concerns, please contact dailyemailsupport@griefshare.org. GriefShare 250 S. Allen Rd. Wake Forest, NC 27587 (800) 395-5755

Day 313 - Branch Out

365 daily emails to help you through the grieving process Grief support groups: Click here to find a GriefShare group near you. If you would like to find a group for a friend or relative, try our Search Page. Want to read ahead or resend a previous daily email? Click Here Branch Out Day 313 If your life has been monopolized up until this point with grief and other grieving people, it is time to branch out. Get involved in a group that includes a variety of people with a similar interest (people who are not grieving). "I had no neighbors to visit me except a young girl across the street," says Gretchen, "and she kept saying, 'You need to belong to the garden club. You just stay in all the time.' She'd wait about six months, and she'd catch me at the mailbox, and she'd say, 'You still don't want to join the garden club?' I'd say, 'No, I can't.' She said, 'Well, I'm just going to put your name on the list anyway.' And I said, 'If it ever comes up, I probably won't be able to go on account of my husband's illness.' She said, 'We'll see about that.' "Well, my husband died the sixteenth of August, and my name came up in September to join the neighborhood garden club. That was just the hand of the Lord. It was a way for me to get out and start meeting my neighbors." In whatever group you choose to be involved in, you will be an asset. If you think your presence does not benefit the group in any way, you are wrong. God made each person to be an important part of the whole. "The eye cannot say to the hand, 'I don't need you!' And the head cannot say to the feet, 'I don't need you!' On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable" (1 Corinthians 12:21-22). Lord, where do You need me? Amen. Through a Season of Grief The daily email messages you are receiving are also available in a book format. Purchase as a gift for a friend or buy a print copy for yourself. Through a Season of Grief by Bill Dunn and Kathy Leonard is available at online and local bookstores or at griefshare.org/devotional. If you would like to recommend these daily emails to a friend, please click here and choose one of the options under Share. For more information about GriefShare, including how to sign up for these daily emails, please click here. All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved. Copyright © 2003-2013 by The Church Initiative, Inc., All rights reserved. No part of this material may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without explicit permission in writing from Church Initiative. You subscribed to this daily email through www.griefshare.org. We value your privacy! We will never give, sell, rent, or otherwise share your email or personal information with any other organization — EVER. To remove this email address from further mailings Click Here while connected to the internet. If you have any problems or concerns, please contact dailyemailsupport@griefshare.org. GriefShare 250 S. Allen Rd. Wake Forest, NC 27587 (800) 395-5755

Day 312 - Making New Memories

365 daily emails to help you through the grieving process Grief support groups: Click here to find a GriefShare group near you. If you would like to find a group for a friend or relative, try our Search Page. Want to read ahead or resend a previous daily email? Click Here Making New Memories Day 312 As you move forward on your journey, you create new memories each day. Enjoy the good memories of the past, but be aware of the new memories that occur daily. What special activity or event do you have planned for today or this weekend? Whom will you invite to join you? Make a new, happy memory. Job suffered great tragedy in his life, but as time went on, the Lord gave Job new opportunities to form happy memories. The Bible says, "The Lord blessed the latter part of Job's life more than the first. He had fourteen thousand sheep, six thousand camels, a thousand yoke of oxen and a thousand donkeys. And he also had seven sons and three daughters" (Job 42:12-13). Lord, renew my mind as I walk with You today. Amen. Grieving with Hope This GriefShare-based book contains short, topical chapters addressing issues that grieving people face but are often hesitant to mention to others; it gently guides people to determine whether they're grieving in a way that leads to hope and ultimate healing. Look for Grieving with Hope by Samuel Hodges and Kathy Leonard at a local or online bookstore or at griefshare.org/hope. If you would like to recommend these daily emails to a friend, please click here and choose one of the options under Share. For more information about GriefShare, including how to sign up for these daily emails, please click here. All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved. Copyright © 2003-2013 by The Church Initiative, Inc., All rights reserved. No part of this material may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without explicit permission in writing from Church Initiative. You subscribed to this daily email through www.griefshare.org. We value your privacy! We will never give, sell, rent, or otherwise share your email or personal information with any other organization — EVER. To remove this email address from further mailings Click Here while connected to the internet. If you have any problems or concerns, please contact dailyemailsupport@griefshare.org. GriefShare 250 S. Allen Rd. Wake Forest, NC 27587 (800) 395-5755