“Good Grief”

Is there such a thing as “good grief”? What’s good about grief? It seems to be an oxymoron… a self-contradicting word. Do you recall people speaking about “joyful sadness”???

Sadness, grief, and sorrow are the opposite of joy…. opposite emotions…opposite motivators…opposite realities.  A glad heart makes a cheerful countenance, but by sorrow of heart the spirit is broken.(Proverbs 15:13)

Sadness is awful. In sorrow and sadness our spirit is crushed. Sadness and happiness can’t live in the same person at the same time …something has to go.

Sometimes I wake up “sad”. I immediately try to figure out why I’m sad… what’s going on in me…is it because of the state of the church, of the world, of my family and friends, of my soul? Sometimes “what I eat can affect how I feel… “a stomach ache can bring on a spirit ache” …. sometimes my actions or sin can bring on sadness…sometimes it’s the attack of the devil, who’s trying to bring me down. Regardless, it’s not good to be sad and we don’t want to linger in sadness. 

I read today that St. Apollos (died in 395) “encouraged joy and gladness, both as the fruit of the life of charity and a necessary antidote against fatigue of soul.” It’s said that his face radiated joy and peace. It would be great to have Apollos as your friend…he would brighten up any room he entered. 

So if we notice that we’re sad or feeling a bit down, let’s quickly turn to the Lord and ask him to deliver us. If it’s something from our past that’s plaguing us, let’s ask the Lord to shine his light on the situation and to heal and deliver us…. if it’s sin let’s be quick to repent…don’t wait, do it right away. If it’s worry about today or tomorrow, ask the Lord to take care of it… the future is in his hands. 

He loves us. He will take care of us. He came to the earth to save us … he will not abandon us. 

“The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit. Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him out of them all.” (Psalm 34:18-19) Wow, there’s no reason to be sad and that’s very good news.