From Emily P Freeman, The Next Right Thing, 37-38. Grand Rapids: Revell, 2019.

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When we’re in the midst of difficult times, not everyone responds as the Writebols did, at least not at first. As people who put their trust in Jesus, sometimes we don’t know what to say when we see someone going through an impossible time. Instead of giving them space to name their own narratives, we rush them into a narrative that makes us feel more comfortable. It can be easy to refuse to let people grieve the way they need to grieve by naming their circumstances for them, saying phrases like, “God is in control” or “Consider it all joy!” or “God works all things together for good.”

He it, it is, and he does. But we are all on our own journey of living in to those truths. We would do well to create space for others to walk a little ways into that truth and begin to name their own narratives in time. We would do well to give ourselves that same space too.