Growth from Loss
Loss is a part of me. But loss is not my identity.
I tend to see loss as an excuse. An excuse to play the victim. An excuse to feel stuck in my melancholy. An excuse to feel isolated and misunderstood.
Now, loss is real and painful and life-altering. Masking those emotions is not healthy—but neither is letting loss define me. Rather, I want it to be a tool He uses to refine me.
In my moments of deepest hurt, I'm offered the chance to walk closer with the One who holds me through it all. I'm offered the chance to see myself as complete, even when I feel broken. Loss is not my identity. Rather, my true identity is rooted in whose I am, not what has happened to me.
Loss also awakens my heart to the places where I need to heal and grow. In my pain, I invite Him to heal the broken places where loss feels overwhelming. In the ashes of what was, He offers me the chance to grow in faith and trust. In my loss, He brings new life to the places the enemy sought to destroy.
Loss is an invitation to be made new.
Sometimes, I don't want to grow in response to loss. Sometimes, I want to play the victim, believing I'm only worth the sum of my hurt. Sometimes, the loss—though painful—feels comfortable and familiar. And I do not want Him to lead me to new, unknown places.
But when I am quiet—when I allow Him to speak—my heart softens. I am then willing to let Him heal my most broken places.
Because of Him, I can move forward in the wake of hurt and loss and confusion. Because of him, I'm not stuck. Because of him, I'm worth infinitely more than what's happened to me:
I have experienced loss, but I am not any less. In fact, He says that all is loss compared to knowing Him.
I have experienced hurt, but I do not have to remain wounded or hurt others in the process. He came to heal all my pain.
I have experienced abandonment, but I know intrinsically that I am worth staying for. He says I am the apple of his eye.
I have been the subject of ridicule, but I can choose to see lies as just that: lies. He speaks the truth in love.
I have been abused, but I do not have to continue allowing abuse to happen. He sets me free from bondage.
I have experienced grief, but I don't have to be paralyzed by it. He came to wipe away every tear.
Loss—in any capacity—shapes us.
But through Jesus, we have the opportunity to let it transform us.