Daily Devotional 11-25-25

When Seasons Remind Us of Loss

I remember many holidays with my grandmother, but I also remember the first one after she went to be with the Lord. The Christmas joy felt muted, like I was wearing ear plugs that quieted the happy sounds of the season. I wanted to celebrate Christ’s birth, but I also wanted to cry. I struggled to figure out how to do both.

Navigating the holidays is a challenge after we lose someone we love. Maybe you’ve suffered a recent loss, and this holiday season feels more sorrowful than joyful. The overarching storyline of redemptive history that helps us understand the Bible—creation, fall, redemption, and consummation—can also help us understand the struggles of the Christian life. Let’s consider how these truths can comfort our grieving hearts this holiday season.

The storyline of redemption starts with creation. Genesis 1:27 teaches us that God made us in His image. He created us to be in relationship with Him and with others (Gen. 2:18). He created Adam and Eve to be holy and to dwell forever in a perfect relationship with Him. Because of the creation narrative, we know our longing to be with our loved ones is a good desire given to us by God. Our love for others reflects His image. If we were still in Eden, we would enjoy perfect relationships with God and others.

But as we know, we are not in that perfect garden. When Adam and Eve sinned, death entered the world (Gen. 3). The fall devastated our relationship with God and our relationships with others. Now our good desire to be with our loved ones has been thwarted by death.

As the holidays approach, you grieve and lament. You see the twinkling lights and shiny gifts under the tree, and you remember a time when those sights filled you with joy. But now, you’re filled with sorrow and dread. You want to look forward to holiday events and family gatherings, but you can’t see anything except the hole left by your loved one’s absence. The effects of the fall loom large.

But God’s Word tells us that immediately following the fall, God promised redemption. The seed of the woman would bruise the head of the seed of the serpent (Gen. 3:15). The rest of the Old Testament looks ahead to the promised Messiah who would rescue His people from the devastation of the fall.

As the New Testament opens, we learn how God kept that promise by sending His Son to take on flesh (John 1:14). Through the life, death, and resurrection of our Redeemer, Jesus Christ, we have been reconciled to God and set free from sin and death (Rom. 5).

In this life, our tears may never dry. But on that day, our God will wipe every tear from our eyes forever.

This is where we live: in the already and not yet of God’s redemption. Christ has conquered sin and death, and we are freed from condemnation and the sting of death (Rom. 8:1; 1 Cor. 15:54–57). But this victory has not yet been consummated, so we still suffer the effects of the fall. We struggle with temptation, sin, weakness, and doubt. We watch evil seemingly triumph over good in our families, our communities, and our world. We weep at the gravesites of the ones we love.

Maybe today you’re so weighed down by the “not yet” that you’ve lost sight of the “already.” This holiday season, remember God’s redemption. How does your salvation give you hope? What difference does your union with Christ make as you grieve? How can His future promises change the way you live today?

When we feel the sting of death, we remember that death has been conquered decisively and eternally by our Savior. When we suffer the pain of grief, we can bring our sorrow to the throne of grace and find God’s grace, mercy, and help in our times of trouble (Heb. 4:16). When we struggle to put one foot in front of the other each day, we find hope and strength as we consider the glory that awaits us with the Lord (1 Peter 1:3–5).

One day, Christ will return, and His victorious kingdom will be consummated in the new heavens and new earth. Looking forward to this consummation reminds us that this pain will not last forever. Christ’s return is certain. His victory is complete. In this life, our tears may never dry. But on that day, our God will wipe every tear from our eyes forever. The new heavens and new earth will be even better than Adam and Eve’s blissful garden because the threat of sin, evil, sickness, and death will be gone (Rev. 21:1–5).



If our loved one belonged to Christ, we can look forward to being reunited with that loved one someday. But the best reunion of all will be the marriage feast of Jesus Christ, the bridegroom, and His bride, the church. We will be perfectly holy, perfectly joyful, and perfectly satisfied in Him for all eternity. This is our hope this holiday season: because of the redemption accomplished by the incarnate Son of God, we look forward to a glorious end to all our sorrow.

From: https://learn.ligonier.org/articles/when-seasons-remind-us-of-loss