I'll be honest... it's been quite a week. I've sent on ahead of me no less than five souls to our Home in Heaven. A couple of them were important to our church family where I serve, one was a friend to my brother-in-law, and the other two were folks I had served with in different congregations. All five dearly loved. Each made my heart more resolute to chase after that "well done, good and faithful servant" when I finally leave this world myself. Every loss also reminds me of the power of the Holy Spirit in grief.
In our funeral this past weekend of one of our incredibly well-loved musicians, you could see this truth in action. The band led worship and was anointed in that service unlike any I remember for quite some time. They were all broken-hearted to say goodbye to such a great friend and fellow worshipper, but in the lowliness of grief they experienced and demonstrated the power of God on them.
In Jewish culture, the community of faith responds by "sitting shiva" with those who've lost a loved one. They bring food so no one has to worry about their physical needs. They cover the mirrors, so no one has to worry about how they look while they grieve. And they sit with the grieving in a ministry of being present. No magical words or cliches - just sit and be with the hurting. When sitting shiva, they also sit on stools near the floor rather than on the regular furniture in an acknowledgement they've been brought low by grief.
"Brought low by grief" doesn't really sell t-shirts. It's not a fantastical expression of faith that sells books or is a catchy slogan for church growth. It IS however a very important part of mourning. To mourn well, to grieve well, we must acknowledge the humility of death. We might suffer in a cycle of mourning unless we can come to terms with the lowliness of death - that we don't always win, we don't always get what we ask for in prayer, and life is certainly not always fair.
But the humility we receive in these truths have within them the most precious promise and gift from God Himself. Andrew Murray in his book "Humility" teaches, "God is faithful. Just as water ever seeks & fills the lowest place, so the moment God finds the creature abased and empty, His glory & power flow in to exalt & to bless." Simply stated, humility floods and fills the humble with the power of God.
In our funeral this past weekend of one of our incredibly well-loved musicians, you could see this truth in action. The band led worship and was anointed in that service unlike any I remember for quite some time. They were all broken-hearted to say goodbye to such a great friend and fellow worshipper, but in the lowliness of grief they experienced and demonstrated the power of God on them.
Jesus taught His disciples this - "when I leave, I'm sending a Comforter" - the Holy Spirit of God. After all, those who mourn will be Comforted by the God of all Comfort. In their lives, that teaching proved true - when Jesus left the disciples, the Holy Spirit came and did so in such a way that no one could deny the power of God. It flowed to the lowly and broken - the presumptuous like Peter, the one full of questions like Thomas, the lost who had spent every hour with their Messiah and had no clue what life would look like now that they'd watched Him leave. You know... people like us - the ones who presumed God would answer our prayer, the ones who just want to know why or why now, the ones struggling to re-imagine a life they thought they had already figured out. All of us who've been touched by grief.
This week is the busiest week of the calendar for our worship ministry, and it comes on the heels of a painful farewell of friends and loved ones. And all I can think is, "If you knew the power of God resting on you in your mourning, if you could realize the power of God not only for your healing but for your ministry, if we grasped the gift of the Holy Spirit within us and upon us for this season, we would teach like we've never taught, sing like we've never sung before, serve like we've never given ourselves to more fully. In being brought low, we have been empowered for the Glory of God.
In the busiest week of the year, our church sits shiva brought low by grief, and because of that, the power of God is at rest upon us for the work of the ministry. May He flow to the low place. May He rest upon the heads of tearful mourners and pool within their souls. And may Christ be lifted high among those brought low by grief.
Lord, in Your mercy hear our prayer.