Faith after a loss doesn’t mean you’re not sad. It means you’re sad with hope.

Hope does not cancel sadness and nothing about grief gets smaller because you believe something. People expect faith to produce composure, and then feel they are doing it wrong when they are still falling apart in supermarkets months later. Sad with hope is a real and difficult position. Both halves are present at once, and the hope does not make the missing less sharp.

If you are carrying a loss, let it be both this week. Say the true thing about how much it hurts, and take whatever comfort is actually available without requiring it to fix anything.