God created us as complex creatures, capable of feeling and sensing a whole garden of emotions. Made in the image of our Creator, we can both grieve the wrongs of this world, and celebrate the sweetness of this life. This 2-week reading plan will lead us through a series of passages from Scripture that examine the seasons of mourning and dancing in the life of a believer. In the written responses here on the site, our writers will enter into this tension, articulating their personal experiences with grief and joy in hopes of freeing you to explore your own. By immersing our hearts and minds in God’s Word, and honestly presenting our laments to Him, may we remember that God is present with us, He is good, and He is faithful.
On the day our daughter died, I planted flowers.
It was April in Tennessee, and the reality that my child was hanging in a precarious balance between life and death, in part because my womb was acting as her life support, was never far from my mind. That Monday morning, I kissed my husband and weekend guests out the door, then helped my toddler son get dressed and fed him yogurt and Cheerios for breakfast.
Even while death was happening, so was life.
That Monday morning, we blew bubbles. We played on the swing set. I read a book on the back porch, and we snacked on strawberries. When my toddler was fast asleep in his crib, I slipped my hands into a pair of old gardening gloves, knelt in the dirt, and got to work with my spade. Bent over my pregnant belly, hands in the soil, the evidence of life kicked and turned within me. The gravity of the moment was lost on me at the time, but I see it now.
Planting.
Acting on hope.
Believing promises.
Burying seeds in the darkness.
Knowing a thing can only produce something beautiful if it dies first (John 12:24). Ecclesiastes 3 tells us there is a time for every matter under heaven.
A time to be born, and a time to die.
A time to plant, and a time to uproot.
A time to weep, and a time to laugh.
A time to mourn, and a time to dance.
For our precious daughter, that Monday afternoon in April was a time to die. For us, it was a time to mourn. But it was also a time to actively hope in promises that life comes from death. It was a time to dance because our child was in the presence of her Savior.
That day, not knowing what the night would hold, the Lord led me through the motions of actively hoping and believing that death brings life. An object lesson of the resurrection in my soil-covered hands, I could not have known these would be some of the last turns and kicks I’d ever feel. And so, I planted.
Life and death are not respecters of each other. Mourning and dancing—they don’t always take turns. Not in my story, not in yours, not in our world. While people celebrate weddings and first steps and the sweetness of life, the broken world continues to break our hearts, sometimes at the very same time. The tension is there—wondering when to celebrate and when to cry. Often the best thing we can do is acknowledge that tension and do both, seeking the Lord as we navigate the complexities of this world.
We must never stop mourning brokenness. It is right to mourn. And we must never cease to celebrate life and beauty. It is right to dance. Because of Christ, life comes from death. Because of Christ, we will dance again.
“Truly I tell you, you will weep and mourn, but the world will rejoice.
You will become sorrowful, but your sorrow will turn to joy” (John 16:20).
My mother died from Covid-19 seven months ago. I’ve been devastated. She had just come to live with us two months before, and she and I had so many plans to do together. I feel cheated of time with her by Covid. I needed this reading today. I need to realize that it’s okay to mourn and to dance. It may take awhile to get to the dancing part, but I know this only lasts for a season.
I lost my mom, in March 2013. She had lived with us for 21 years and to be honest I was at peace with her passing. She left a hole in our hearts but she was so tired of the battle she was fighting. It was a blessing for her and for my grandchildren and kids. They learned death wasn’t to be feared. Since then I have lost about 15 people. My dad, stepmom, uncle, mother-in-law, my great niece, my son-in-laws grandparents, 6 friends and the biggest was my husband. I tell you this because I went on autopilot. I was never angry, I just kept moving forward. Being busy kept me sane. When my husband, of 29 years, passed people told me I was angry with God but that wasn’t true. Although he died unexpectedly I realized he was sicker than he told me. Finally God started taking me on a journey of recovery. I didn’t know how to be a 1 after being a 2 for so many years. A had to learn a new normal. I did ok until I was challenged to surrender Chuck to God. Then I lost it. What I discovered was I was afraid to do that because if he was gone then I might disappear because we were so connected. I am okay with it now (after 4 years). In two weeks God and I will hold our first meeting of Women of Heart, A Journey Through Grief. I am very excited. I can breathe again.
I lost my mom, in March 2013. She had lived with us for 21 years and to be honest I was at peace with her passing. She left a hole in our hearts but she was so tired of the battle she was fighting. It was a blessing for her and for my grandchildren and kids. They learned death wasn’t to be feared. Since then I have lost about 15 people. My dad, stepmom, uncle, mother-in-law, my great niece, my son-in-laws grandparents, 6 friends and the biggest was my husband. I tell you this because I went on autopilot. I was never angry, I just kept moving forward. Being busy kept me sane. When my husband, of 29 years, passed people told me I was angry with God but that wasn’t true. Although he died unexpectedly I realized he was sicker than he told me.
I just started this study because I have tried to handle my grief of loosing my husband 2 years ago Halloween without any help. We were married 46 years. I have prayed. But I kinda blamed God. I didn’t loose my faith, but I just didn’t feel like I should. I have been healing my faith and trust with God through SRT studies and I am feeling blessed by God with all He does in my life. I just feel that I need to understand more about mourning and my grief.
I lost my fiancé not even two months ago & I must say this devotional is speaking to me tonight. ❤️
December 2020 my grandfather passed away, at the same time that was happening, My father got COVID-19 just as badly as you could get it. He was intubated the day before my grandpas funeral, and the day of my grandpas funeral, a whole other side to my father we didn’t ever know began to unravel and come out in his absence. Infidelity. My father was intubated for 17 days, in long term care for much longer. That January, I also became engaged. My husband asked my mom and siblings permission to marry me, and even though I didn’t want it at the time, he didn’t get to ask my dad. Something we’d always dreamed about. The last thing I said to my dad before he was intubated was that he better get better because I was pretty sure I was going to have a wedding in 2021 and he needed to walk me down the aisle. We’d always dreamt of that and the father daughter dance. Now I was faced with the reality he might not even be at my wedding, and even if he could be, I wasn’t sure I wanted him there. I could go on about the massive heartbreaks that were happening in the short months leading up to our wedding, but suffice it to say I deeply know the feeling of walking in the time of dancing and mourning at the same time. There’s much healing left to happen, but I’m so thankful the Lord knows we sometimes need the greatest joy in the deepest heartbreak, because we otherwise might not be able to make it through.
December 2020 my grandfather passed away, at the same time that was happening, My father got COVID-19 just as badly as you could get it. He was intubated the day before my grandpas funeral, and the day of my grandpas funeral, a whole other side to my father we didn’t ever know began to unravel and come out in his absence. Infidelity. My father was intubated for 17 days, in long term care for much longer. That January, I also became engaged. My husband asked my mom and siblings permission to marry me, and even though I didn’t want it at the time, he didn’t get to ask my dad. Something we’d always dreamed about. The last thing I said to my dad before he was intubated was that he better get better because I was pretty sure I was going to have a wedding in 2021 and he needed to walk me down the aisle. We’d always dreamt of that and the father daughter dance. Now I was faced with the reality he might not even be at my wedding, and even if he could be, I wasn’t sure I wanted him there. I could go on about the massive heartbreaks that were happening in the short months leading up to our wedding, but suffice it to say I deeply know the feeling of walking in the time of dancing and mourning at the same time. There’s much healing kedt
December 2020 my grandfather passed away, at the same time that was happening, My father got COVID-19 just as badly as you could get it. He was intubated the day before my grandpas funeral, and the day of my grandpas funeral, a whole other side to my father we didn’t ever know began to unravel and come out in his absence. Infidelity. My father was intubated for 17 days, in long term care for much longer. That January, I also became engaged. My husband asked my mom and siblings permission to marry me, and even though I didn’t want it at the time, he didn’t get to ask my dad. Something we’d always dreamed about. The last thing I said to my dad before he was intubated was that he better get better because I was pretty sure I was going to have a wedding in 2021 and he needed to walk mw