This is such an excellent message by Brian Cosby! It rings truth to the America Church! I will be officiating another funeral service of a young person on Saturday. The Lord has taught me so very much about life and death in officiating so many funerals over the last four years. I have noticed that many Churches do not teach about death and grieving. Many would rather tell a person they will be healed! That does not happen all the time! Denying the reality of suffering and death My goodness! Dying needs to be preached on! Eternal life needs to be preached on! We are grieving over many things here in the Moede household this Christmas, Without God, we would be in the ditch somewhere.
Brian Cosby’s message appears in Churchleaders:
It’s one thing to know that God refines us through suffering. It’s another thing to experience those trials and hardships firsthand. Read on for insights about how God works through challenges.
When tragedy strikes—the death of a child, hurricanes, a school shooting—we begin looking for an escape from the pain. Or we clamor for answers from religious “experts” to explain the ever-present question “Why?” We want answers, and we want to believe our suffering isn’t meaningless. We want to know for sure that God refines us through suffering and hardship.
Our culture, unfortunately, strives to deny the reality of suffering and death. And we continually long to drink from the fountain of youth—expressed in our endless pursuit of Botox treatments, anti-aging cream, cosmetic surgeries, and hair dyes. We cloak funerals as “celebrations” and convey the empty promise that all people end up in heaven (except Hitler and Stalin, perhaps). More Here
Fear can be a huge factor in our grief
Lifeway Research: Christmas No Longer Most Popular Holiday in America
