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Godly Grief

2 Corinthians 7:10- “For Godly grief produces a repentance not to be regretted and leading to salvation, but worldly grief produces death.”

Definition of grief- keen mental suffering or distress over affliction or loss; sharp sorrow; painful regret.
 
What is Godly grief? How can grief be Godly? Why would God allow us to go through a “mental suffering”, if you will, so that we feel depressed, discouraged, distressed, etc. –  all the side effects of grief? When someone thinks of grief, they think of it as the grave loss of a person. Most people do not know or understand that there can be different forms/kinds of grief. Perhaps God wills to bring you to a state of spiritual grief in order to open your eyes, mind, and heart to things that you were blind to before. As the very next verse states, “For consider how much diligence this very thing—this grieving as God wills—has produced in you: what a desire to clear yourselves, what indignation, what fear, what deep longing, what zeal, what justice! In every way you showed yourselves to be pure in this matter.” Just as God allows trials and hardships to enter your life to make you a stronger, better person, I believe He also allows us to go through a “Godly grief” to lead us to repentance, salvation and life (as the verse states). When we reach repentance, we reach a deeper understanding and knowledge of who God is. When we reach repentance, we have reached the state of being humbled. God wants us to live a fearless, doubtless, life. He wants us to live in assurance that He is in control and our futures are burning bright (Jer. 29:11). He does not desire for us to grieve in self-pity over who we have become or what we have done. He does not want us to dwell on it and have many regrets. That is what the world does. The world lets their grief consume them so much that it eventually causes them spiritual death, choking them of their potential. They give the enemy rights to speak such thoughts of whom they are and what they’ve become, that they literally become consumed and numb. When we recognize the things that need to change within our lives and beings, when we recognize that we simply cannot do it on our own, when we are able to grasp the spirituality behind it all – God will give you grace and begin to lead you to a state of repentance and salvation (as it proclaims in the verse). Once you reach that state, you will feel the chains fall; you will feel a release, a lifted burden. God will take the burden(s) from your shoulders, and you will begin to feel His presence again. He will purge out the things that are not of Him, and He will show you how to walk forward. He will help and guide you to where you need to go next if you stay faithful and humble. He will bless you for choosing His way instead of the enemy’s way, which would lead to death. Next time you feel grief, depression, anxiety, or regret in your heart, think twice about what you should do with those emotions/feelings. Should you allow HaSatan to continue to deceive you, or will you allow God to open your eyes and lead you to His Truth and life?

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