During my seminary days, I took a class titled “Loss and Grief.” At the time, the only real grief I had experienced was the loss and grief associated with having a parent who lives daily with a mental illness. Later I lost both of my grandparents; my mom’s parents to death. And I lost my elementary best friend to death.

So I am no stranger to death and grief. But this past year has been one of the hardest in regards to death. It started last September/October with a young colleague Maggie dying. Then days later, our seminary friend Justin. In November, my favorite high school teacher lost her battle with cancer. In March, my dear friend Ben died followed shortly by a dear seminary professor. In July, our friend Rachel died. Then in August, Stephanie. And just a few weeks ago, a dear family friend was taken from us unexpectedly after a car accident. Each of these deaths came so unexpectedly and these individuals were taken from us way too soon.

It seems that I would just catch my breath and then I would hear about another death of a beloved soul. It’s all been too much. Yet I know that grief is part of the process of life. So my hope is that these 31 days will bless you in the midst of perhaps your own grief.

I’m no expert, but I have learned and grown along this road of loss and grief. And as my friend Karrilee often says, God bosses us around and God is bossing me to share my grief; to be honest and vulnerable. So during this month, I will share my own grief, my own lessons learned and also what has helped me walk this journey of loss and grief.

I hope you will join me here. And if you are on your own grief journey, that maybe my words will show you the light and give you some glimpses of hope.

Day One: 31 Days to Grieving Well: An Introduction
Day Two: 52 Weeks, 365 Days, One Year!
Day Three: Free Flowing Tears
Day Four: Lamenting How Long
Day Five: Sharing in Grief
Day Six: A Broken Pair of Sunglasses
Day Seven: Sunday Simplicity
Day Eight: The Veil of Grief
Day Nine: The Lenten Weary Road of Grief
Day Ten: Sitting in the Book of Job
Day Eleven: The Gift of Community
Day Twelve: Praising God in the Storms
Day Thirteen: Finding Peace in an Unlikely Place
Day Fourteen: Sunday Simplicity #2
Day Fifteen: At A Loss for Words
Day Sixteen: For Each Other
Day Seventeen: Lamenting
Day Eighteen: The Price of Love
Day Nineteen: Who?
Day Twenty: Grief is Exhausting!
Day Twenty One: Sunday Simplicity #3
Day Twenty Two: A Butterfly
Day Twenty Three: The Sacredness of Funerals
Day Twenty Four: Resurrection Hope
Day Twenty Five: Grief’s Weight
Day Twenty Six: These Moments
Day Twenty Seven: No Regrets
Day Twenty Eight: Sunday Simplicity #4
Day Twenty Nine: Grief and Fear
Day Thirty: A Psalm of Rain
Day Thirty One: The Body of Christ