Phases of Grief, Spiritual Positivity, and Learning Lament with Clint D. Watkins
Welcome to this segment of Groundtable on Yellow Soul. In this episode my Co-host, Brit Albin, and I have Clint Watkins at the table. Clint is a husband, father, author, and full-time missionary. Clint walks us through the process of his own grief in the early stages of loss and beyond. We learn how the edges of his grief have smoothed out, and even though it's still there, through the healing, he's not wrecked by sorrow everyday. Clint got honest about being honest and invites us to not feel the need to edit what others may be experiencing in their own response to grief. Grieving, mourning, and lament, are all holy, sacred spaces we can give ourselves to and know that God will give of Himself with us in the process. God never leaves our story even when it feels like He is nowhere to be found. Clint shares he really wrote his book, Just Be Honest, because often people believe that faith is being positive, faith is about polite prayers, faith and suffering is just talking about the happy things and silver linings- they're not bad things, but they're not the only things. Actually being honest about what we're going through with God and others is a primary way of faith according to the Scriptures. God pulls us into hope and helps us endure, not by sugar-coating or ignoring things but being honest with Him, other people, and with yourself about the pain you're going through. We can bring our whole-selves to the table with God and He doesn't hold our pain against us! We learn how to navigate hard conversations and how to grieve our own losses while continuing to love and connect with others who are enduring pain too. Suffering and pain are inevitable in life and Clint shares why the Scriptures, specifically Job 42:7, are his True North regardless of where he is in his journey. Clint takes some time to encourage the hearts of men that expressing emotions and being a strong man, a warrior if you will, are not mutually exclusive. Tears aren't weakness. We learn what was most helpful for him was having people in his life that gave him the space and permission he needed to grieve in his own way. Each person has a unique grief journey and showing up for others might look like just sitting in solitude with them while they weep. Often times we can feel ill-equipped to serve the heart of another human enduring pain, but then we realize it's not about us. If we will show up, God will do what He does best- work through us as a vessel of love. We learn the rhythms he started with have changed over time, but many he still lives out today. The messy terrain of learning how he and his wife needed to grieve in their own way while also finding healthy ways to heal together. We all experience pain and grief which is why we believe every human needs to hear this conversation. Instead of stumbling through grief, we can learn the permission of lament becomes a gateway for our own healing. We believe this could be the best part of your day! Thank you for listening friend! Buy his book, his audio book, and connect with Clint D. Watkins: All Things Here! Connect with me: All Things Here! Connect with Brit Albin: All Things Here! Music Provided By @LAKEYINSPIRED - Warm Nights Genius co-producer Ben Valdez
