Hello Ladies ~ Today I am sharing a little something from my heart. I became a widow 23 months ago yesterday. I’ve come quite a way in this journey so far, as God has been my strength and with God beside me each step of the way, I will make it through to the end when I will see Him face to face. What a time of celebration that will be.
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Widowhood is not something we chose.
It happened.
Our lives changed.
We are on a new journey in this life. I've read that we can look at it as an adventure. During this journey we grieve, we learn to trust God for everything. We grow in His grace and tender mercies. Being a widow is not by chance, or bad luck, it is the will of God and it is a gift. A gift to draw closer to Him.
When I first became a widow I cried out to God (still do) to be my strength. I asked Him to heal my broken heart, even though I did not see how that was possible. Tears came often and sometimes lasted a good while.
I read the Bible, I searched online to find help for Christian widows. I read widow's blogs, web pages, read books for widows. All were uplifting and encouraging.
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I was deeply touched and encouraged by the writings of Octavius Winslow (1808-1878).
He wrote in "The Godly Widow Confiding in the Widow's God"
In Jeremiah 49:11. "Let thy widows trust in me."
It is well! All that he does, who speaks these touching words, is well.
It is well with you, for he who gave in love, in love has taken away the mercy that he gave. The companion of your youth, the friend of your bosom, the treasure of your heart, the solace of your declining years, is removed, but since God has done it—it is, it must be well.
Look now above the circumstances of your deep and dark sorrow, God has done it; and that very God who has smitten, who has bereaved, and who has removed your all of earthly good, now invites you to trust in him. Chance has not brought you into this state; accident has not bereft you of your treasure; God has made you a widow, that you may confide in the widow’s God.
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There are so many scripture verses to let us know that God loves us and cares for us deeply during this time in our lives. Verses that will draw us to a closer relationship with Him. One of my favorites is found in:
Psa 139:17
As we dwell on what God says to us in His word, our faith becomes strengthened. As our faith is strengthened then we can be a light to others of His love and mercy. We can encourage other widows on this journey.
The two verses below really touched my heart at my very first Friends Needing Friends meeting. All of the ladies were reading these out loud and it blessed me in my fresh grief. These ladies knew how I was feeling and they comforted me as we visited after the meeting. They told me it would get easier, and it has. All because of God.
Blessed be God,
even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
the Father of mercies,
and the God of all comfort;
Who comforts us in all our tribulation,
that we may be able to comfort them
which are in any trouble,
by the comfort wherewith we ourselves
are comforted of God.
2Co 1:3-4
Other verses have been a tremendous help to me also:
See, I have written your name on the palms of my hands.
Isa 49:16
Just think, God has your name written in the palms of his hands. That’s wonderful!
And another is:
The eternal God is thy refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms:
Deu_33:27
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In the gift of each new day of this journey, may we all grow in the love that God has for each and everyone of us.
May we grow in the knowledge of His word, so that we will be loving, forgiving and encouraging to one another.
In closing, are some verses about our tears. I still have times of tears, but they don’t last as long, the grief isn’t so raw. God has most definitely been my comfort.
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“You keep track of all my sorrows. You have collected all my tears in your bottle. You have recorded each one in your book.” Psalm 56:8 (NLT)
"He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever."
Revelation 21:4
Those who sow in tears shall reap in joy...
Psalm 126:5
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Remember too, next Monday the 17th is our next meeting/luncheon for our south Florida ladies.
Our guest speaker will be our own Sue Dolbow and she will be speaking on what is our ‘Focus’ in this life. Pray for her as she speaks. Pray for the staff and Dotti as we all prepare for our gathering together.
Love, hugs & prayers ~ Rainey
