Alice Tyszka, a female author of possibly Polish origin once remarked: “The key to living through storms is embracing them. Taking every moment of beauty, every sadness, and knowing it is your own. Leaving the ones that have passed, letting go, facing the newest times, with even the smallest bit of courage. Though it can be terrifying to try, taking on the storm, and then watching it pass by.” Isaiah 41:10 reminds us: “Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”
After a turbulent storm usually comes stillness, peace and tranquility. A "storm of life" is a symbolic metaphor for the complex, emotional or abstract experiences of life. It challenges the basic foothold of unity, faith, and resilience, often with a residual feeling of overwhelming and unpredictability. It can cause havoc and pain in its wake. These difficult seasons test inner strength and can lead to fear or doubt, but they can also be seen as opportunities for growth, purification, and deeper reliance on faith, with the constant belief that they are temporary and ultimately serve a purpose, even if that may be disguised or unclear at the time.
Storms can be considered the darker clouds of life. It is said that God works in mysterious ways. The death of a loved one may be considered as one of its most destructive elements. It is metaphorically described as a powerful, upsetting force of devastation, sometimes seen as a challenging transition, the completion of a cycle, or a path to a new existence. However, in reality, the zest of life effectively becomes a dormant component depending on one's spiritual or philosophical beliefs.
Death is an inevitable factor. Its distinctive in its biological cessation, and marks the end of a time. It is a unique experience for each individual that can open new doors which may portray cultural symbolism and philosophical meanings. It is usually viewed as subjective, but it's also seen as a universal, natural process, a fundamental part of life, and a gradual process rather than a single moment in time, making it both personal and universally shared. Its "distinctiveness" lies in the contrast between its finality as an event and its profound, ongoing impact on the living and consciousness. While it may sometimes be a release for the afflicted, it does leave painful scars. The death of a loved one profoundly impacts people emotionally (sadness, anger, guilt, shock, loneliness), physically (fatigue, sleep/appetite changes, body pains, weakened immunity), and mentally (difficulty concentrating, confusion, changes in brain wiring). It often evokes the searching question: “Why?” This grief response reshapes lives, causing deep trauma and creating voids, but, if the right perspective is allowed, it can also foster new strengths, deeper connections, and greater compassion as individuals rebuild their lives around the loss, though it can sometimes lead to prolonged or complex grief.
Storms call for faith. Whether one is a follower of Christ through their life is a matter of personal choice which is often influenced by individual circumstances. Faith and life are deeply related; faith isn't just a Sunday ritual but a transformative force that influences everyday choices, actions, relationships, and inner strength, while life provides the context to express and grow that faith, showing it's a lived experience of trust and action, not just belief. Genuine faith is demonstrated through how one lives, works, and interacts making them inseparable partners. However, the loss of a loved one can erroneously test that faith, sometimes to the extreme. It can effectively shatter or strengthen.
The story of Job, from the Hebrew Bible, features a righteous, wealthy man tested by God and Satan; after losing his children, wealth, and health to painful sores, Job still refuses to curse God, debating his suffering with friends who believe he must have sinned. God appears, rebukes them, and restores Job's fortunes, teaching a lesson about faith beyond worldly blessings and the mystery of suffering. Job is a pious, prosperous man. God praises him, but Satan (the Adversary) claims Job is only faithful because of his blessings. God allows Satan to strip Job of everything - livestock, servants, children, and finally his health (boils) - but not his life, to test his faith. Despite immense suffering, Job refuses to curse God, though he mourns deeply and questions why this is happening. God appears in a whirlwind, not to explain the suffering but to show His power and Job's limited understanding, rebuking the friends and Job for their limited views. Eventually, Job humbles himself, and God restores his health, wealth, and family, giving him double what he had before, with new children and a long life. The story explores why the righteous suffer, challenging the simple idea that suffering always equals sin, and ultimately affirming faith in God's mysterious ways.
This particular story addresses the raw reality of grief, loss, and mortality without offering shallow platitudes. While the book is often associated with intense suffering, it provides profound themes of hope, the sovereignty of God, and the assurance of a future beyond the grave. Death can bring hope in various spiritual, philosophical, and personal ways, offering promises of the afterlife, reunion, meaning, or release from suffering, though secular views often see it as an end, with hope found in legacy or the natural cycle. For many, religious faith provides hope for eternal life and reunion with God, while others find hope in the idea of the soul's journey or a natural transition to another realm. For those facing suffering, death can be seen as a welcome release, offering hope for peace, while for survivors, hope can emerge in finding purpose and meaning through grief.
Mark 4:35-39 reminds us: “On that day, when evening had come, he said to them, “Let us go across to the other side.” And leaving the crowd, they took him with them in the boat, just as he was. And other boats were with him. And a great windstorm arose, and the waves were breaking into the boat, so that the boat was already filling. But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion. And they woke him and said to him, “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?” And he awoke and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, “Peace! Be still!” And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm.”
The conflicting traumas and issues of life often incur their own casualties. These may include those considered guilty by some, or the innocent. The aspirations and heartaches that life can bring transform its inequalities into common destinies. However, the reconciliation of God shapes the world and its content. Christian theology teaches that God actively reconciles humanity to Himself through Jesus Christ, bridging the separation caused by sin, and offers a "ministry of reconciliation" for believers to spread this message and mend broken human relationships. Alice Munro, a Canadian short story writer once remarked: “Moments of kindness and reconciliation are worth having, even if the parting has to come sooner or later.”
2 Corinthians 5:18 describes how God, through Jesus Christ, initiated and accomplished the reconciliation of humanity to Himself, removing the barrier of sin, and then entrusted believers with the "ministry of reconciliation" It reminds us: “All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation.” This reconciliation isn't just going back to the past but creating a new, renewed relationship with God, making people new creations in Christ, and enabling them to be ambassadors for this peace with others. Dependency on another in times of grief unites the sorrow shared by all. We are the body of Christ and each of us represents part of that figure. Death may be seen as a surrender of independence, but it transforms into a new life of harmony with others. Death becomes a new adventure in life. A perspective never before envisaged by actual knowledge, only supposition.
Amen.
