Four Types Of Mourning

For example, he said in Psalm 55:6-8, "And I said, Oh that I had wings like a dove! for then would I fly away, and be at rest. Lo, then would I wander far off, and remain in the wilderness…I would hasten my escape from the windy storm and tempest."

The questions we ask ourselves sometimes are:

• WHY DO WE HAVE TO HAVE THESE PROBLEMS?

• WHY CAN’T THE WORLD BE A PERFECT PLACE TO LIVE?

For example, in a perfect world:

• A person should feel as good at 50 as he did at 17

• We would actually be as smart at 50 as we thought we were at 17

• We would have as much energy at 70 as we did at 4

• Pro baseball players would complain about teachers being paid contracts worth millions of dollars

• Potato chips might have calories, but if you ate them with a dip, the calories would be neutralized

• If the guy from the government said to you, "I’m here to help," not only would he mean it, but also he’d do it

• Highway patrolmen would never be around when you’re running late, but would always be at your side when a BMW blows past or a Mac truck won’t get off your bumper

• The better food tasted, the less calories it would have

• Warranties would be for 13 months and products would fail at 12

That would be the perfect world, but sin has affected this world and it is less than perfect. We all have to learn to deal with the PROBLEMS OF LIFE.

God has a purpose in us living in an IMPERFECT WORLD! If the world in which we live was perfect and there were no problems to deal with --- WE WOULD NOT NEED A GOD TO TRUST IN TIMES OF TROUBLE!

Illus: Abraham Lincoln said, “Many times problems have driven me to my knees!”

The people we most admire in this life, are men and women who have learned to ENJOY THE GOOD TIMES and TRUST GOD DURING THE HARD TIMES.

Illus: Everyone can not run a hundred yard dash in 4 seconds, but if everyone could run a hundred yard dash in 4 seconds there would be no one to admire.

What David suggested would be nice, but we can not fly away from our problems. God has designed a life for us that consists of LAUGHTER and SORROW.

Solomon said, in Ecclesiastes 3:1a & 4, “To every thing there is a season…A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance.”

Many people who have been raised watching movies and television think life is all about LAUGHING and having a good time. BUT NOT SO! There are times for LAUGHTER, but there are also times for MOURNING.

In Ecclesiastes 3, Solomon tells us that in all areas of life, wisdom requires that we understand what’s going on and respond to it appropriately. For example, Solomon writes that there’s, “…a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;”

Illus: A lot of men wish their wife would learn this lesson. One man said “I haven't spoken to my wife in nearly 18 months — I don't want to interrupt her!”

There is a time to keep SILENT and a time to SPEAK, but also there is a time to LAUGH and a time to CRY.

Illus: When the times of WEEPING come into our life, the Lord wants to teach us that when we are given a LEMON in life, He can turn it into LEMONADE if we trust Him.

Look at Matthew 5:4 "Blessed are they that mourn; for they shall be comforted."

Illus: Bill Gaither wrote a song that says it this way:

Something beautiful something good,

All my confusion Jesus understood.

All I have to offer him is brokenness and strife,

But he made something beautiful out of my life.

Life is a mixture of many things, but many times it is a life of HAPPINESS and SADNESS. Let’s look at the times of SADNESS. These times in our life cause us to MOURN!

I want to show you FOUR KINDS OF MOURNING from the scriptures. Some are GOOD and some are BAD!

I. THERE IS A GENERAL MOURNING - IT IS GOOD!

People mourn when they lose a loved one. It is a normal reaction. The Bible says in John 11:35, that when Lazarus, the Lord’s good friend died, “Jesus Wept.”

But this kind of mourning comes with a caution. That is, we can lose a loved one and grieve ourselves to death. We have to realize, as David who lost his son, that death is not the end for believers.

Look at 2 Samuel 12:16-23, we read, “David therefore besought God for the child; and David fasted, and went in, and lay all night upon the earth. And the elders of his house arose, and went to him, to raise him up from the earth: but he would not, neither did he eat bread with them. And it came to pass on the seventh day, that the child died. And the servants of David feared to tell him that the child was dead: for they said, Behold, while the child was yet alive, we spake unto him, and he would not hearken unto our voice: how will he then vex himself, if we tell him that the child is dead? But when David saw that his servants whispered, David perceived that the child was dead: therefore David said unto his servants, Is the child dead? And they said, He is dead. Then David arose from the earth, and washed, and anointed himself, and changed his apparel, and came into the house of the LORD, and worshipped: then he came to his own house; and when he required, they set bread before him, and he did eat. Then said his servants unto him, What thing is this that thou hast done? thou didst fast and weep for the child, while it was alive; but when the child was dead, thou didst rise and eat bread. And he said, While the child was yet alive, I fasted and wept: for I said, Who can tell whether GOD will be gracious to me, that the child may live? But now he is dead, wherefore should I fast? can I bring him back again? I shall go to him, but he shall not return to me.”