Grief can be isolating.
It separates me as one who knows loss by experience from those who have only looked on from the outside.
It opens a chasm between me and people who aren’t aware that life can be changed in a single instant.
And I can feel like no one sees me, no one cares about me and no one notices my pain.
Sometimes it even feels like God has forgotten me-that He isn’t listening, that He doesn’t care.
But Jehovah hasn’t abandoned me.
Have you ever wondered why there are lists of names in the Bible? Do you, like me, sometimes rush through them or pass over them to get to the “main part” of a story?
But look again, the names ARE the story.
The God of the Bible isn’t the God of the masses. He is the God of the individual.
He walked in the garden with Adam and Eve. He called out to Cain, ‘Where is your brother?”
He took Enoch, guided Noah, chose Abraham and Moses.
He anointed David, spoke to and through the prophets and He CAME, flesh to flesh to bear the sins of His people, redeem them from death and cover them with His blood.
My name is graven on His hands.
“Can a mother forget the baby at her breast
and have no compassion on the child she has borne?
Though she may forget,
I will not forget you!
See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands”Isaiah 49: 15-16a NIV
My life is hidden with Christ.
For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life,appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.
Colossians 3:3-4 NIV
He has a new name for me, a secret name I’ll receive in Heaven.
“To the one who conquers through faithfulness even unto death, I will feed you with hidden manna and give you a white stone. Upon this stone, a new name is engraved. No one knows this name except for its recipient.”
Revelation 2:17b VOICE
The enemy wants to convince me that God has forgotten me.
That He has abandoned me in my sorrow and pain.
That when my son breathed his last, He was looking the other way.
That’s a lie.
And I refuse to listen.
Years ago I heard this song for the first time and it touched my heart:
He Knows My Name by Israel (listen here)
Lyrics:
I have a Maker
He Formed My Heart
Before even time began
My life was in his hands
(Chorus)
He knows my name
He knows my every thought
He sees each tear that falls
And hears me when I call
Not everyone reading this has lost a child.
But everyone has lost something or someone.
And everyone, if they are honest, has experienced moments of anguish wondering if God in heaven cares.
He does.
He hears.
He knows your name.
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thelifeididntchoose 
It was 5 years last week since Luke chose to go on ahead, some times it feels like yesterday and I am fumbling around like I did all those years ago.
This post reminds me how much I did and sometimes still do have to tell myself Luke has not been left among the dead, we have not been forgotten. Even though the trauma of his dying still has reverberations on our lives and we stumble and limp from one thing to another. Keeping my eyes on the smallest positive and being grateful that I and my family aren’t forgotten that we are part of God’s plan.
Thank you for sharing again Melanie.
Sending love across the ocean ❤
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We lost our son in July and used that song in his funeral. It is such a beautiful song.
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I just love this!
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Thank you. That song was very meaningful to me before Dominic ran ahead to heaven and now it’s even more so. He does know our names. He sees us-even when we feel invisible to everyone else. That’s a great comfort to my heart. ❤
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I’m so glad you reposted this. After losing a child, I felt like God just disappeared. The grief is so overwhelming that you can barely hear God’s whisper. Last summer, my husband quit his job. It was a necessary thing for him to do, but after 6 long months, God provided a job that not only wiped out all the debt we needed to live on, but provided above and beyond for us in the present. 6 months later, God saw fit to remove my husband from that job (May 22 of this year), and we are without employment again. It’s hard for me to not ask, “where are you? what are you doing:” The quietness is deafening sometimes. But I also know that the same God who parted the sea for his children to walk through, the same God who heard Hannah when she cried out to God, the same God who worked in individual lives throughout scripture, is the exact same God who called me and knows me better than I know myself. He is here..he is present…he is with me. Even when I FEEL the quiet, even when I FEEL that He isn’t by my side, I have to speak truth to myself. Satan’s shouts of “he has abandoned you!!” can overwhelm me if I don’t constantly tell myself, “that’s a lie!! You are here, Lord!” Thanks for this reminder. I saved it to my FB page so I can read it over and over.
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Karie, sometimes life is beyond hard! I’m sorry for these ongoing struggles but thankful that you are choosing to turn your heart toward the Lord Who loves you even in the hard. I will be praying that God directst your husband’s steps and opens the perfect door to the right job. Praying also that He gives you daily encouraging reminders that He DOES see and He DOES hear. Much love to you dear one. ❤
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We are going through very similar circumstances. 2 years ago in March, my husband lost his job. That May our oldest of 6 children was married,(happy time), but left our home. That July our first born son Noah drowned, he was 16. Our lives are a mess. The next year our 18 yrs. old daughter left for college. Our next daughter is a Sr. in HS this year. Our nest is 1/2 sized. Then on the 2yr. anniversary of Noah’s death, my boss let me go. My husband took a minimum wage job. We are behind on rent. I have never been so depressed as I am now. Then I read your message. It is helping. We are a christian family too. I wonder where is God, I am so weak. Why doesn’t he turn the tide a bit for us. Why???
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I am so very sorry Beckie! What a heavy burden to bear. I have no idea why God doesn’t turn the tide for you or anyone who is struggling so. All I can offer is that He sees you, He loves you and He is working. I refuse to offer trite or pithy answers to unfathomable questions. For me, it means holding God’s sovereignty and His goodness in tension for the rest of my earthly life. I can only trust that my Father has a plan and He is working the plan. He is God and I am not. Praying mercy and grace over your life. May the Lord whisper, “courage, My child” to your hurting heart. ❤
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Yes, He does know my name and your name and all of His children’s name. Ge would never let anyone snatch one of His children from his hand. Her promised that to His children. Amen and Amen. That is the solace I have in my heart regarding Dominic’ s earthly death. He lives forever with our mighty God in Heaven. He wants to comfort us who are left. Especially his earthly mother and father. God made a masterpiece in Dominic. What a legacy he has left to all who knew him., I still think of him every day several times, and when I do m always a smile comes on myt lips. He is my wonderful joy for the day. Praise the Lord for letting me and grandpapa have such a precious and loving grandson. I think God for all my grandchildren. I have learned why they are called grand children cause they are grand in the eyes of grandparents. I love you and pray for you my daughter. Kiss for Julian and Fiona. We a re looking forward to seeing all in Montgomery. YEA……………Mama
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Thank You
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