Thursday, August 28, 2008

Good Grief

In the twilight of my day, my daughter came to me, broken and longing to talk about the pain of her winter of grief. My heart knew that I was entering a holy place as she began to talk. I moved carefully and slowly as this beautiful young princess of my heart poured out grief from the cracking edges of her heart. As painful as it was for us both--there, just over her shoulder, stood joy. The joy of knowing that she would soon feel deeply satisfied to have spoken the unspeakable. Her tears will help her sleep this night. Her sorrow will soften her pillow tonight. Her sheets will feel fresher because of honest confession. Her soul will rest because of God's grace. Sleep will come, peaceful sleep, as winter slowly fades from our lives.
The loss of your love is not good in itself. The pain is piercingly chilly, but the warmth of spring comes. Flowers bloom and hope gently and fragrantly fills your air. This is good grief.
Ed Litton

P.S. My name is Kayla Litton and I approve this message!

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

Kayla, I lost my father at 15 years old and can relate to what
you are feeling. I
still find myself at 37 asking God--why He allowed my life to unfold the way he did. But I trust --make a choice to believe- that He is mindful of all things we experience: loss, pain, confusion, anger. And He understands these emotions-even the doubt we may have asking ourselves,"Do you really even love me, God?" He does.
Keeping reaching out to your dad for comfort, you are a blessed girl and one day you'll find yourself smiling, realizing just that.

Anonymous said...

KAYLA;
I AM GLAD YOU APPROVE THIS MESSAGE. I THINK I HAVE TOLD YOU I LOST MY DAD WHEN I WAS SHORT OF 9 YERS OLD AND STILL MISS HIM BUT HAVE SUCH FOND MEMORIES. THE LORD HAS ALLOWED YOU TO HAVE SUCH WONDERFUL MEMORIES AND GOOD TIMES WITH OUR PRECIOUS TAMMY. I LOVE YOU SO MUCH. LOVE AND PRAYERS NANNA

Anonymous said...

My favorite part is the P.S. Loving the Littons, Jan

Martha Schmidt said...

Kayla....you are so blessed to have a sweet Daddy who will listen to your cries. You are precious in HIS sight!

Anonymous said...

Kayla,

You have been in my prayers this week. Your poem gave light in some grief that I have been feeling:

"What do you do
When hope seems so far away
That you think you won't last in the days...
HOPE
Hope is what makes you carry on
Hope is what will make you strong"

You are gifted, sweet and a beautiful young daughter with a wonderful Dad!

Hugs,
Ginger M Saucier

messickmom said...

Pastor Ed, I'm so glad Kayla has you to pour her heart out to. You are a great dad!

Anonymous said...

Ed Litton,
You my friend are a REAL Man! I thank God of every remembrance of you. As I watch you from far off, often reading your blog and listening to you preach I am amazed how God himself is working through you. I want you to know I am praying for you and your family. I thank God I was able to meet you and Tammy. You will never know how much you two have impacted my life and those around me. GOD BLESS YOU!

Jason Dupree Millington, TN