Every session has specific goals—things you want your group to walk away knowing, feeling, and committing to do.

• Main Idea: Although challenges may lead us to ask, “What if?” God calls us to ask, “What’s next?”
• Head Change: To accept that God has authority over everything and has a plan for our lives.
• Heart Change: To enjoy God and glorify him amid tragedy.
• Life Change: To allow God to bring the healing He desires in our lives.

What is one thing that you would change about yourself if you could?

Grief and suffering highlight our insufficiency and connect us with others. We are far more likely to establish meaningful relationships through suffering than through a painless existence. God is likely shaping you through your trials to appreciate His goodness, which He wishes to express through you.

Read 2 Corinthians 12:7-10.
Show Session 4: Grief (7 minutes).

Handling grief is difficult, but Lamar shares, “It’s important to know that grief is not a disease to be cured; it is a statement that you have lost something.”

When does grief branch out further than intended and cause harm to our lives?

GRIEF HUMBLES US TO ACCEPT GOD’S WILL.

Paul’s triumphs were tempered by a “thorn in the flesh” sent to prevent self-exaltation. Paul recognized that God had allowed this while acknowledging the thorn as an attack from Satan. Why are trials necessary for our humility before God?

Lamar shares that our grief can draw us toward “people who we have come to know and love.” What about grief helps us connect with others?

GRIEF IS A MEANS TO GROW OUR FAITH.

Despite Paul’s pleading, God did not remove the troublesome “thorn” from his life. Lamar states, “It is not uncommon to feel as if you have lost a piece of yourself that can never be replaced. It is undeniable that experiencing grief can make you feel as though we have nothing to live for. The experience of loss is a tremendous burden to bear.” How can bearing our grief develop our faith in God?

Lamar asks, “What if Jesus didn’t just come to bring healing to earth? What if He came to bring heaven to earth?” In what way does suffering give us a fuller picture of God’s plan for humanity?

GRIEF GIVES WAY TO GLORY.

Paul learned that his infirmities were a source of strength – not in himself but in God. Lamar notes that we often assume suffering disqualifies us from displaying God’s glory, yet our weaknesses are a means to display God’s glory. How does God’s glory shine through our grief? Why does enjoying God in our grief highlight His goodness?

We often take the wrong perspective of our trials. They are meant to drive us toward God in praise. As you take stock of the troubles in your life, consider how you can glorify God through those troubles to give Him the glory He is due.

Lamar explains, “Whether we ever have the opportunity to enjoy healing, we always have the opportunity to enjoy Him and that means that while we may not be healed, we are still His, and that’s God’s ultimate answer to a life of suffering.”

The answer to suffering is not the answer we would expect. Though we wish God would remove the suffering, He usually grows us through it. Grief and suffering increase our faith more than any other means. Resolve to glorify God even in your darkest moments so that, by enjoying God at all times, you can find joy – even amid life’s trials.