O Death, Where Is Your Sting?
Deep in my guts when I hear the words:
Are you sitting down? I have bad news.
Nana has passed away.
When I realize that moms can’t live forever.
When I learn that a baby whose heart was once beating
is no longer.
The sting feels like a gut punch
The ache is deep and raw.
Nothing prepares you for the heartache.
Even when you knew it was coming.
The tears come. Streaming down.
Messy. Throat tightens.
Not enough tissue.
Not enough air.
Oh, but I am not alone.
Others loved this person.
Love me.
I fall into their arms.
And the One who loves me the most —
He is there. They are with Him.
The sting is real. It is not forever.
Love never ends.
I wrote this with deep compassion for those who have lost loved ones, drawn from my own grief and from walking beside grieving families as a hospice and hospital chaplain.
Paul reminds us of this hope for every believer:
“Death is swallowed up in victory.
O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law; but thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” (1 Cor. 15:54-57)
The pain of grief comes and lingers. Yet Paul knew that for those who believe in Jesus, death is not the end. Because of Jesus, our future with Him is secure.
One day every tear will be wiped away, what is broken will be made whole, and joy will return as we are reunited.
Love leaves an ache when someone is absent because the relationship mattered.
You matter, too. You are deeply loved. God sees your tears. He knows your heartache.
There is no rush through this valley of grief. But know that you are never alone. He walks with us. He will not leave us. He will see us through.
How?
Step by step.
Breath by breath.
Prayer by prayer.
1 response to “The Sting Is Real. It Is Not Forever.”
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A reader shared this with me after reading the poem and gave permission for me to share it anonymously. It was a gift to me, and I hope it is to you as well.
You are there when I feel you;
You are there when I don’t;
When I bang my head against the wall, you are there;
When I walk the dark road of sadness, you are there;
The pain is here and more will come;
But you are still here;
As my world shrinks to a shriveled core; you still are here;
The cut, the wound, the scar hurts in the now, and how;
But still you remain, wrapped around me forevermore.As I child I danced among the flowers;
As an adult I climbed and viewed the vistas;
I saw the stars, the sun and moon rushing thru the heavens;
Aging, I feel the seeping of vitality but not of hope;
Not everything has a beginning and an end;
The spark of life is like a burning ember in the night;
But unlike a fire-flung spark, it will never end;
Dancing thru time and space with its creator;
In future peace, harmony and everlasting love.
— A wise soul
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