The holidays tend to be magnifiers for many of us—they magnify our joys, yet they also magnify our losses. I’ll never forget a few years ago when someone in our church shared the pain of navigating Christmas shortly after the loss of a loved one. Perhaps you’re facing the pain of a loss or disappointment right now… I know I’ve been there before.

Did you know Jesus actually talked about loss in His first ever sermon? In Matthew 5:4, Jesus tells us, “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.” In other words, Jesus is saying, “Happy are those who mourn…” Seems a bit paradoxical, right?

Well, Jesus knows we are going to face losses… and we need to mourn and grieve those losses. Our hearts are going to break. We’re going to endure deep losses and disappointments. Thankfully, Jesus has been there. He, too, faced great loss. He practices what He preaches.

You see, three of Jesus’ closest friends were Mary, Martha, and Lazarus. They lived in the city of Bethany and Jesus went to see them after hearing of Lazarus’ death in John 11. When He arrives and sees Mary, her tears, and the tears of her friends, Scripture says in John 11:33, …He groaned in the spirit and was troubled. Then we read in verse 35, Jesus wept.

Jesus, God-in-the-flesh, wept. His heart was troubled. He showed up to do an amazing miracle—to bring Lazarus from death-to-life—yet before that, He teaches us a lesson on the importance of grieving.

Friend, God gives you permission to grieve. It’s a humble, honest, healthy response to the painful experiences we face—and through grief, God brings us new life and deep healing.

To discover how to grieve like Jesus, dive into this message with me…