"Grief"
“Laughter can conceal a heavy heart;
when the laughter ends, the grief remains.”
-Prov. 14:13 (NLT)
No doubt,
many are familiar with the names Robin Williams and Chris Farley, two brilliant
and hilarious comedians who entertained countless fans. Besides comedy, they
also shared depression and deep pain which eventually led to their deaths.
Williams committed suicide and Farley overdosed on drugs.
There are many
today who suffer from depression and inner pain who do a great job of masking
it. Some isolate themselves, perhaps seeming to be unsociable or even angry,
while others may seem like the happiest people on the planet.
In an age of
“mass communication,” it seems we are more lonely, more depressed, and more
confused than ever before. I think this may be the result of the death of relationships.
While grief and depression go back, long before the age of technology, many
reports show an increased number of people experiencing depression and other psychological
disorders. While it may seem a bit uncomfortable dealing with people we don’t
understand, isn’t it the right thing to do?
Many of us
no longer have the family structure we once had around us for support. Parents and
others have died or moved away, around half of marriages end in divorce and parents
fight over visitation with the kids, the list goes on. Some, mainly the
twenty-somethings, find family structure with their friends and colleagues but
fail to realize, it isn’t the same. While you may be able to share some things
with friends that you would feel uncomfortable sharing with family, who loves
you unconditionally?
I often
think of those who live in nursing homes or alone. Some have no family, while others
have family who are too busy to visit. You might think being surrounded by
others around the same age and with the same conditions, they would find
community but that doesn’t seem to be the case for many. Some are still able to
get around but many are bedridden.
If we gain
nothing else from this Covid 19 pandemic, we should at least learn what
isolation and loneliness feels like. When it is over, rather than thinking, “I’m
glad that’s over,” perhaps we can ask ourselves, “what can I do now to reach
others who are lonely?”
As
Christians, are we not instructed to be family and good neighbors?
The Scriptures warn of not taking care of each other and Jesus talked about taking care of the widow and the orphan (Job 22:9; Isa. 10:2; Jer. 49:11; Mal. 3:5; Mat. 24:13; Acts 6:1), visiting the sick, those in jail, feeding and clothing the poor (Mat. 25:41-46). This last passage in Matthew ends with a dire warning so we should pay attention.
Those of us who call ourselves Christians should be
very careful in the way we deal with each other or neglect one another.
Starting
today, why not make it our goal to reach out to at least one person this week who
might not have family or just get to know one person we might not otherwise
talk to. Next week, we can reach out to two. The next week three, and so on.
Getting to know the janitor where you work, that homeless guy on the way home,
that man at church who others avoid, or an aged relative you’ve neglected to
call.
I think of Ebenezer
Scrooge’s nephew who, despite his nastiness, never failed to invite him to
Christmas dinner.
Instead of
saying, “He’ll never change,” why not say, “how can I be a good neighbor to
this hurting soul?” or, “how can I show her Jesus?”
When a
person like Robin Williams or Chris Farley are gone, it’s too late and you will
never have another opportunity to reach them with the love of Christ. When you
stand before the Lord to give an account, what will you say?
If you
change the font for Grief (Bookshelf Symbol 7), you will see it is “Grief.”
Many of us are around people everyday who are struggling with grief and
depression but we never see it. Even if a person seems happy and the life of
the party, they may be struggling in a way we can’t understand.
To see more
comedians who suffered from depression and took their own lives, see:
https://www.ranker.com/list/famous-comedians-who-committed-suicide/celebrity-lists
To read
more about Chris Farley, see:
https://www.biography.com/actor/chris-farley
.
