Be a Listener - Be an Encourager - Be a Grace-extender -
A couple of reminders for all of us …
Though we want to help and we project what we would prefer in a similar life circumstance, it is important to remember that some are very private people and choose to grieve privately. Your care for the ‘private person’ will look different; however, God will give you wisdom how to give care through a phone message, an email, a card, a silent hug or some other God-inspired idea!
Another important reminder is that even in the best of relationships, disagreements arise. But in actuality, when people are hurting, there may be more points with which to “take issue.” It is at those ‘sticky’ times we need to be dispensers of God’s grace. What might be a good way to handle some of those disagreeable moments? How may we extend God’s grace to the one who is grieving?
I love the following, taken from the context of “A Chaplain’s Daily Prayer:”
“Grant that I may listen and hear the true heart-felt needs of those around me. May I not be so wrapped up in myself, and my own issues, that I fail to meet people where they are emotionally and spiritually. Give me the courage to come from my heart and not just my head. May my words be few, and may they be words of truth, empathy, and hope spoken in love. I pray that each person to whom I minister will be brought at least one step closer to you because of my being with them. “
“Lord, may it be so with me!”