Loss at any time of the year is painful.
Loss during what is supposed to be a joyful season seems even worse.
Whether it is actually worse is not easy to determine. Maybe it is because our expectations of this time of year are so high, that this blow seems much worse than at other times in our lives. Whatever the reason, the loss is real, and unfortunately it will be tied with the remembrance of the holiday for years to come.
Without going into detail, I'll just share that some young people in my town lost their lives today. I ask that you pray for the families and friends: God knows exactly who they are and will comfort them in ways that we could never understand.
When faced with things like this, it can be difficult to also have a focus on Jesus, the "Reason for the Season" as all those bumper stickers call him.
However, I believe that is exactly what we must do, especially during times such as this.
Jesus is the reason we have salvation. If they believed, then Jesus is the reason we will one day again see our friends or family in heaven. Jesus is the one to bring us into fellowship with God. Jesus sent us the Holy Spirit, to live and dwell in us and comfort us in only ways that he can.
Jesus is with us, not to tell us not to worry or not to cry, but to hold us while we do so, and offer us the hope of a life beyond this everyday existence that we have now.
I pray for each of you reading this that you never have to know what it is like to lose someone during this season, however the odds of that over a lifetime are slim to none. If or when it happens, just remember who to put your hope and trust in.
Cry out to Jesus.
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