GRIEFSHARE
As GriefShare returns to FBCTLH, I wanted to extend an invitation to you. For those unfamiliar, it is designed for those of us who have lost a family member or close friend and are walking a grief journey. It is set up as a small group, integrating biblically-based video content with group discussion. Topics include Self-Care, Loneliness & Sadness, Fearful & Overwhelmed, Anger, Regrets, Questions for God, and several others.
From GriefShare’s website: A GriefShare support group is a safe, welcoming place where people understand the difficult emotions of grief. Through this 13-week group, you’ll discover what to expect in the days ahead and what’s “normal” in grief. Since there are no neat, orderly stages of grief, you’ll learn helpful ways of coping with grief, in all its unpredictability – and gain solid support each step of the way.
Starting next week (February 3 & 4), groups are being offered on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, 6-7:30 PM, in Chason 113 (small conference room near the receptionist’s desk in the Church Office). Church members will lead the sessions. Our facilitators this semester are Bill St. John (Tuesdays) and Linda Teague (Wednesdays). I will be helping them as a secondary facilitator, so, I’ll contribute as both a participant and as a leader.
A few months after my wife Susan unexpectedly passed in 2022, I started attending a group at a sister congregation here in town. It was a helpful tool the Lord used in my life as I took the initial steps into my grief journey. At that time, I realized how very little I understood about expressing my lament to the Lord. Last year, I also experienced the passing of my mother. While I certainly do not have it all figured out, I’m convinced that walking through the curriculum again will help me to better digest much of the content. To say that I’m looking forward to GriefShare seems odd, but I recognize the benefit of the program, the encouragement from the discussion, and the strengthening of my walk with the Lord through studying His Word.
Would you consider joining one of our groups? I recommend this not only for your own grief journey, but also for what the Lord may use in your life to encourage someone else. Most of us have said goodbye on this side of heaven to family members and friends, and that creates very real emotions through which we must process, as well as practical challenges that need to be overcome. Our study of God’s Word will provide guidance on how to do this. It is natural to mourn when losing someone we love. We will explore a biblical and practical approach to grief and healing. Of course, it is a process, and everyone walks through it uniquely. We will do our best to provide prayerful and consistent support while trusting in God’s amazing grace to help us each step of the way!
If you have any questions about our GriefShare groups, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me at gwilliams@fbctlh.org, or feel free to contact Shane Monroe, FBCTLH’s Administrative Assistant to Missions and Pastoral Care, smonroe@fbctlh.org.
Materials will be provided free of charge for FBCTLH members. Non-members are asked to provide $10, which will help offset the cost of the workbook.
For all of us who are grieving, we thank the Lord for His closeness, especially in times like this. May we find peace and healing through our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
God bless you!
Greg
Greg Williams, Associate Pastor of Pastoral Care