Welcome Friends,
Wouldn’t it be nice if our future selves could come back and tell us exactly
where we’re going to go wrong—so we could fix it before it happens?
If only life were that easy… but in some ways, it can be.
The Bible isn’t just a history book- it’s a book full of lessons.
Because history has a way of repeating itself
In my study of Daniel chapter 9 and 10
Daniel experienced what we might call complex grief
He was deeply overwhelmed with sorrow and grief
He mourned for 3 weeks, he could not eat
It came from the heavy burden of knowing Israel’s difficult future
The 70-year exile was coming to an end and the people had not truly repented and their hearts
were still far from God and a greater trial was still to come
For many of us, we’ve faced moments like that
Complex grief is when everything feels like it’s falling apart all at once,
Things in life are happening so close together
one thing happens, then another thing happens and another thing happens
we are exhausted, overwhelmed, filled with sorrow and grief
we don’t have time to process to process any of it
because your so overwhelmed with all of it
Demons don’t get sick, take a day off, or need a nap.
They war against us day and night
constantly pushing us to the edge as they expose the limits of our humanity
I was in a season of life where I was pushed to my limit
overwhelmed, exhausted and depressed by life’s unexpected blows.
How was I supposed to process it all? How was I to move forward?
Honestly, it would’ve been so much easier if I had just known God’s Word more deeply.
If my future self could have come back and told me:
“God’s word just isn’t a book. It is meant to be our handbook to guide us in this world”
Everything we need to know about how to live on this earth is found in Scripture.
How did Daniel overcome his complex grief—and what can we learn from his example?
Let’s take a step back into history and find out
He lamented—grieving honestly before God through prayer.
He models this for us, showing how sorrow can lead us to a deeper dependence on God.
His grief moved him to fast, pray, and seek the Lord with all his heart,
which opened the door to greater revelation and divine strength
Lamenting is the path that leads us into reality
It’s being honest in our pain, confusion, and sorrow in the presence of God.
It allows us to bring our raw emotions into the light
Lament is a process that invites God into our suffering
and helps us move through grief in relationship with Him, rather than apart from Him.
Through lament, we don’t just process pain—we surrender it.
1. we must recognize that the weight we’re carrying is too much for us alone.
It will crush us unless we invite God in to carry it with us.
2. we must allow ourselves to feel and process
We don’t want to numb it, hid it or deny it
3. Take time to reflect on how your own choices may have contributed to the pain you’re experiencing.
It’s not about self-condemnation in a season of hardship but about honestly acknowledging,
“I could have handled ______ differently.”
I made some foolish decisions that now have me experiencing more anxiety and pain
Lamenting allows us to learn to empathize and sympathize with others that are hurting
Sometime when we are hurting, we become very selfish and all we are concerned about is ourselves
When we invite God into our circumstances,
He opens our heart to see the needs of others and their struggles and hurting
Sometimes complex grief is connected to God’s greater purpose,
we find ourselves wrestling with Him—seeking answers, comfort, or direction.
I wrestled with God for a good two years
laminating, processing, and struggling to understand
why certain things were happening in my life, wanting more clarity
But as I grew in my understanding of God’s Word and deepened my relationship with Him,
the answers began to come. I found peace.
If my future self could have written me a letter before the trial began,
it might have said something like this:
Dear Me,
I know you’re hurting right now. The pain feels heavy and the confusion is overwhelming
You’re trying to make sense of things that are happening.
Let those tears come, let questions rise and bring it to God.
Learn to lament-invite Him into the pain instead of trying to carry it alone.
There is a great purpose ahead of you, but before you can walk in it,
God must refine you and prepare you.
It’s going to be hard. It will stretch you. He will isolate you and break you
but you are not being abandoned.
God will give you the strength to endure it.
And when you finally come through to the other side,
you’ll see with clarity what you couldn’t see in the middle of the storm
that the Lord was showing you how you hadn’t given Him your whole heart.
He’s calling you out of a self-led life and into one fully led by Him.
And as He takes His rightful place at the center of your life,
you’ll begin to see how much more blessed and purposeful your journey becomes
and that every tear had a purpose and your pain will not be wasted
The outcome of our circumstances is never guaranteed,
but I can guarantee this:
When you walk with God through the pain and learning to lament
He shapes your character in ways you never imagined.
and that kind of transformation is something only He can do.
And that kind of growth is always worth it.
Heaven Father
Even when our external circumstances remain the same,
We thank You that our hearts don’t have to.
Through Your strength, when we are overwhelmed, You offer peace.
Thank You for being near in every season, and for shaping our character
through the trials we face.
Help us to keep walking with You, trusting that You are doing a deeper work within us
even when we can’t yet see it.
In Jesus’ Amen
I invite you to walk this journey with me
True change starts from within
Let’s open our hearts and allow God to shape us
so we can better impact the world around us
https://echosofmyfootsteps.com
