Walking Through the Valley Class Outline

Life After the Loss - Normal Grieving Patterns

• The tides of grief
• Different ways people grieve.
• Dealing with special days.
• What fills the empty void?

The Power of Community

• How to support those in grief.
• If your in grief, the importance of staying connected.
• Church – How necessary.
• Others reaction to your grief.

Sensitivity to Others Who are also Grieving

• They lost someone special too.
• Encouraging others who have felt the same loss.

Lessons Learned in the House of Mourning

• What’s really important – What is eternal & what is temporal
• Redeeming the time.

Guilt and Regret – Dealing with it

• We weren’t perfect and neither were they
• The What If’s.
• Forgiving yourself.
• The Sovereignty of God.
• Don’t get caught in the downward spiral.
• You still have a life and relationships which need you.

Relationships after the Loss

• Loss of a Child - Marriage after the Loss
• Commitment to keep
• Understanding & accepting different grieving patterns
• How long should we grieve
• Guarding your heart
• Loss of a Spouse or Marriage
• Loss of a Parent

Wallking Through the Valley Grief Recovery Class

It has been a while since my last entry. Tonight my wife and I start teaching a grief recovery class at our church. I believe it is a new step in the process of grieving. I've learned in the past that the teacher always learns more than the student. I'm sure we will learn as much from those attending the class as they will from us teaching it. It is my intent to try and document the subject matter covered in each class so that those attending the class can review the material later in their home. I hope if you are not attending the class that the information I present will also be helpful for you. May God Bless you as you walk through your Valley, whatever that may be.