Parents, does someone need your presence? Once, when I was in the throes of heartache from a break up with my now wife of thirty years, my parents drove back from a vacation to check on me. The drive was 12 hours and they only stopped for gas and arrived in the middle of the night. They knew me well and knew my selfishness probably had as much to do with the break up as Anita did, a life lesson they could address later, but for now, they decided to drive all the way back home towing a boat in order to sit Shiva with me. They did this because they loved me “no matter what” and hated that I was hurting. I say “sit Shiva” in the Jewish sense of mourning with me through the grief of the presumed death of this relationship, not sitting Shiva in the sense of hanging out with the Hindu god. The word Shiva in Hebrew actually means seven, because it was a seven day grieving process in which the mourner could express their grief and work through their loss and slowly return to normal life. Joseph did this seven day mourning period when his father Jacob died (Genesis 50:10) and Job’s friends sat with him for a week after he lost his family. This kind of help through grief is sometimes just a silent presence with the one grieving. For example, Job 2:13 says of Job’s friends, “Then they sat on the ground with him for seven days and seven nights. No one said a word to him, because they saw how great his suffering was.” Our emotional and spiritual presence can speak much more than words sometimes. The fact that we have made the effort just to let someone know we are with them. A pastor friend offered to sit Shiva with me one time when I was heartbroken over a situation as shepherd of my flock. He said he wasn’t sure he had any words that would encourage me, but that he wanted me to know that he was glad to be with me in silent spiritual and emotional solidarity.
Jesus was like that for us. He was glad to come all the way from heaven to be with us in our situation here. Our sin leaves us in a desperate situation, we are all destined for death and we can’t do anything to change that. Jesus, God With Us, adds an element that Shiva doesn’t promise. Shiva helps us process the grief and loss and helps us continue, but the Incarnation of Jesus here with us brings Hope. The fact that God became a man, allows Him to experience and acknowledge our loss, but as God He is also able to bring rescue. Those who love Jesus and follow Him will live eternally with Him. The end of life here on earth is not the end. Jesus doesn’t just sit Shiva for seven days, He is with us all the time. When Jesus was getting ready to leave the earth to be with the Heavenly Father He wanted those who had connected their lives with Him to know they were never alone. He assures them with these words: “No, I will not abandon you as orphans—I will come to you. Soon the world will no longer see me, but you will see me. Since I live, you also will live. When I am raised to life again, you will know that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you.” John 14:18-20 (NLT2) Jesus was not just God With Us for 7 days, or 33 years. He is always with us! His Holy Spirit presence is always in us. If we belong to Him, He is in us, and as we are strengthened and encouraged we can also be an encouraging presence in seemingly hopeless situations. There are some sad and difficult situations all around us right now and there may be someone you can sit virtual Shiva with. The COVID isolation may not allow our physical presence with someone who is hurting, but fortunately we can be with them virtually to bring emotional and spiritual support as they process their grief. We can assure them that God is with them and He cares and that we do too. Maybe we could let them know we will be thinking about them and praying for them everyday for seven days (or longer).
Hang in there people! God is with us! I’m praying for you all!
