Helping children understand death and grief is a challenge, but mum-of-two Sarah Jones, explains that the Queen’s death is an opportunity to speak to our children about God and Jesus and the promise of eternal life.
Loss is such an unnatural thing. We weren’t designed to die. God’s intention was for us to remain with him in the garden, to never feel separation and sorrow. Pain was not part of the plan.
The passing of our beloved Queen has for many, brought into sharp focus, how much death impacts us all and for our children this can be confusing, overwhelming and even fearful. To see a Nation grieve and to question if this may also happen to a closer loved ones is inevitable.
Sickness and death are scary to the young and old alike. The pain of seeing someone suffer and to be faced with the thought that one day that cherished person may not be there can be almost unbearable. These thoughts and feelings can be very difficult for children to not only manage but even to begin to understand.
I know for my eldest son, who at the tender aged of three, found my three weeks in hospital with preeclampsia when pregnant with his younger brother brought huge feelings of anxiety and fear. Now, aged 8, there are sporadic moments where I can see the shadows of this experience in his life. I know that God in many ways has and will continue to heal him as my husband and I endeavour to speak biblical truth into his heart when any anxiety and fearfulness arise.
Our children’s concerns and fears are soothed with hope and an understanding of the grace of God when this truth becomes the focus..
As Christians we are instructed to take our thoughts captive and promised that as we commit our concerns to God, His peace that passes understanding will be given to us. This is how we are to train our children.
As a nation we are grieving. Our Queen has been a constant in the vast majority of all of our lives. In her life of service, she honoured Jesus with her devotion to our country and the people of the commonwealth. Suitably, her death also honours him. With her passing comes an incredible opportunity. Never has such a prominent public figure, that I can recall, had such an open and unwavering faith and steadfast faithfulness to what they believe to be their calling. The Queen’s faith in Jesus, the hope of a future in Heaven, reunited with loved ones and the proclamation in Matthew 25:21 of: “well done good and faithful servant,” from her Lord are the very things to now focus on.
Our children’s concerns and fears are soothed with hope and an understanding of the grace of God when this truth becomes the focus. His desire of restoration and reconciliation, of ultimate healing with a glorious new body, to never perish but to live with him eternally are an invitation to know him and his heart better. The way we communicate illness and death will ultimately show our children how they should view it. Queen Elizabeth’s life and death lead us to a place where the love of Jesus is central. God is Lord of all. His plan for us is good and his promise is eternal. John 6:30-40.
Let’s encourage our children to live as she did, faithfully serving others now and with their hearts set on a future with their beloved Jesus.
I felt in my spirit that the remarkable rainbows which graced both Buckingham Palace and Windsor Castle at the time of her Majesty’s death were God’s way of communicating that there never again would be another like her. Let’s encourage our children to live as she did, faithfully serving others now and with their hearts set on a future with their beloved Jesus.
