People After God's Own Heart:
A Study on the Life of David
Part 12, "The King is Dead... A Lesson in Grief Management"
II Samuel 1
Pastor John Erwin
July 27, 2008
Do you remember where you were on Nov. 22, 1963? It is one of the most remembered days in U.S. history. I was in 3rd grade. It was the Friday before Thanksgiving weekend. It happened at 10:30AM (our time), and he was pronounced dead by 11AM. School was cancelled for the rest of the day and I remember being glued to the TV for the rest of the weekend. Our 35th president, John F. Kennedy had been assassinated. A nation mourned. The shock...the grieving...the uncertainly of those days are a blur. Walter Cronkite led a nation through the numbing pain
of grief. A day, a weekend I will never forget!
David must have felt similar shock upon hearing about the death of Saul. Though his adversary for 14 years, he must cope with the death of his king, as well as the death of his best friend Jonathan. What lessons can we learn about dealing with grief from our lesson today?