I Take off the MASK!

Grief and Healing - Download the eBook

Your joy is your sorrow unmasked. And the selfsame well from which your laughter rises was oftentimes filled with your tears. And how else can it be? The deeper that sorrow carves into your being, the more joy you can contain. – Kahlil Gibran

For our light affliction, which is for the moment, works for us more and more exceedingly an eternal weight of glory… – 2 Corinthians 4:17, WEB

There are times when we may wonder if God is ever fair as we consider the suffering of many in this life. Is it fair that some are rich while others barely have something to eat? Is it fair that some are strong while others linger in a bed of sickness and pain? Is it ever fair that others enjoy the love of special people in their lives while others remain utterly cold and alone?

Indeed, if all that we have is this earthly life, everything would seem to be unjust. But in the light of eternity, we can see things in a whole new way.

Not that our knowledge of heaven could ever take away earth’s wounds today. But that this small light can give us hope, some consolation and strength, and faith to rise again each day.

There is one day we can look forward to. A day of justice and mercy. A day of fullness, of joy and of love.

In that day, it is those who have hungered who shall be filled. It is those who have grieved that shall shout unceasingly with joy!

Only then can we truly say that we have suffered but for a moment, we have been alone but for a day. And every wound our hearts have suffered have each carved out more space for happiness for us, happiness that far far outweighs all our tears and pain.

A certain beggar, named Lazarus, was laid at his gate, full of sores, and desiring to be fed with the crumbs that fell from the rich man’s table. Yes, even the dogs came and licked his sores. The beggar died, and he was carried away by the angels to Abraham’s bosom. – Luke 16, WEB

Remember your word to your servant, because you gave me hope. – Psalms 119:49 (WEB)

Some people are held back by the past. But there are some that are held back by the future. Instead of seeing hope, the future is seen as a threat. Instead of being a door towards one’s dreams, it is seen as an unyielding wall, blocking off whatever light there may be on the other side.

How can the future be so dark its shadow is cast even in the present? How can it be such a heavy burden we carry upon our shoulders? Is there even a way by which we can unchain its weight from our very souls?

The Lord Himself taught us not to be anxious of tomorrow. He taught us not to be afraid. Why else would He tell us so if He would not give us the grace also to accomplish what He desires?

It is grace that He gives us each morning. Every day, we can still find the key.

Fear not therefore. Be free! Everything is still possible for him who believes. Good things can still happen as we begin again today.

The past to mercy, the present to grace, the future to Providence… Let us ask for grace. . . . The Lord hears this prayer, and the cross does not crush it: each morning grace permits us to carry it, to make it again to the evening. – Chiara Corbella Petrillo, A Witness to Joy

“For I know the thoughts that I think towards you,” says the LORD, “thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you hope and a future.” – Jeremiah 29:11, WEBBE

Do not worry if you cannot see how things can turn out well. It is not for us to take care of everything, it is sufficient for us to trust.

Trust though you can’t see. Trust though you can’t understand. Trust even if all you could see is darkness and uncertainty. You are not trusting in what you can see or understand, but upon God whose wisdom is invisible and whose power is beyond our comprehension.

There is a future for you, an eternal one. Even if this life would fail terribly in making your dreams come true, all is not yet the end.

Always have that hope within you, for you are after all, a child of eternity. This life is too short for you. This world is too small.

God has prepared for you a beautiful life, an eternal life. Your future is safe with Him and in Him, all your greatest desires will come true!

What Satan does not let you see is eternity, which comes after. He obscures your view, so that you see solely this world; he does not speak to you of God but of a half god. He has deceived you. – Chiara Corbella Petrillo, A Witness to Joy

“There is hope for your future… I, the Lord, have spoken.” – Jeremiah 31, GNT

When something bad happens we often feel that things can never be the same again. How could they? How could things ever go on like they used to?

We know what things have changed. We feel the ache of the things we’ve lost. We could no longer go back.

But though this be so, let hope not be so far from us. For though the past could never be restored, we do have a future that awaits.

Yes, we couldn’t undo the wounds that have been inflicted upon us, but we can hope for their healing. We could no longer be the same, but we can be better, far stronger than before!

God can use all things for our good, even the darkness and the storm. He will bring out a far better future than the one we have dreamed of. He will not restore the past, but He will bring a victorious tomorrow, a day of gladness that shall never ever end!

As long as we hold on to God, the future is always bright and life is always beautiful. – Jocelyn Soriano

“There is a sacredness in tears. They are not the mark of weakness, but of power. They speak more eloquently than ten thousand tongues. They are the messengers of overwhelming grief, of deep contrition, and of unspeakable love.” -Washington Irving

“You number my wanderings. You put my tears into your bottle. Aren’t they in your book?” – Psalm 56:8, WEB

Sometimes, when all just seems to be painful, just let it go and cry. God understands you. He is not afraid of your tears.

He knows how difficult it is to live in this land of exile. We are not yet home, and many days, all we meet are strangers who don’t seem to care for us at all.

Just let it go. Pray with your heart. Words are sometimes insufficient to express the depths of our hurt, but tears will always know how to find a way. God bless the tears that cleanse the heart and bring us closer to Him who hears all our cries.

Jesus made tears sacred, because he cried. He knew the agony and frustration of our problems. He chose to bear all that is human, and to bring it with him on his return to the Father. The One who sits at God’s right hand knows what it is to cry. – Kathryn James Hermes, Surviving Depression

Jesus wept. – John 11:35, WEB