Overcoming Grief
One Foot On A Banana Peel
Looking Through Grief to the God of All Comfort
If we are living, we must “experience.” Some things we experience are good, wholesome and healthy. Some things are not. When circumstances are traumatic, at some point we almost always experience what is called grief, and we usually can recognize it and identify it. But sometimes what we experience may not be quite so devastating. Or maybe it seems difficult for you, but to someone else it’s a walk in the park. The emotions we feel then may not be as readily and easily recognizable. The important thing in dealing with grief is to recognize and identify it. As the saying goes, “knowing what the problem is, is half the battle.”
There are as many causes for grief and depression, as there are people in the world and negative experiences for them to have. These causes range from life-threatening, life-impairing devastation to a simple, yet difficult-to-handle case of the “blahs.” Maybe you feel like life has passed you by, and you somehow “missed it.” Or maybe you’ve just experienced a traumatic and tragic breach of your life and being.
My own bout with grief began with a diagnosis of cancer for my husband in 1986. Yet, even at the sound of the word, something supernatural was happening. There was no fear, no “ton-of-bricks-that-just- smacked-you-between-the-eyeballs” feeling. There was peace. And that peace was, as the Scriptures call it, one that “passes all understanding.” There was clarity of thinking, wisdom in decision-making processes, and favor before man. All these were things which man could not produce. And they continued throughout our ordeal. All through this dark tunnel, was this supernatural “presence” which continued to stay with me, carrying me above the horror of this great tragedy. This began our journey, which was to last for many years to come. During those years, there were many other deaths of immediate family members and close friends. In addition, there were other crises in life that my family and I experienced. The supernatural blessings which were so apparent during the treatment and subsequent death of my husband, were not present with the same level of intensity during all of the times of crises which followed. Varying degrees of pain, agony and depression swirled in and out of my life during those years. I didn’t understand it all … not until years later.
There is so much pain in this world. Afflictions and heartaches in life come quickly and abruptly, and try to steal away all our hopes and dreams. Grief and depression weigh heavily on our hearts. “One Foot on a Banana Peel” is a description of grief and an expression of the hope and healing that lie beyond trauma and tragedy. It offers insight into:
- the Biblical perspective of grief
- What hope is … and what it is not
- Contending with God over pain and suffering
- The difference between “reality” and “truth,” and how this can affect our choices in times of grief and depression.
You will learn as I did, that as deep as the pain goes, so deep goes the love and grace of God to bring healing. When you feel as though you have ‘one foot on a banana peel,’ place your other foot in the hand of God. It’s the safest place there is to be.
