How can I comfort others who are mourning?

Psalm 116:15The Lord cares deeply when his loved ones die.

We can assure them that God loves them and cares for them in this time of grief.

Psalm 23:4Even when I walk through the darkest valley, I will not be afraid, for you are close beside me. Your rod and your staff protect and comfort me.

Psalm 34:18The Lord is close to the brokenhearted; he rescues those whose spirits are crushed.

Psalm 119:49-50Remember your promise to me; it is my only hope. Your promise revives me; it comforts me in all my troubles.

We can assure them that God is close to them and will comfort them through his presence and promises.

Nehemiah 8:10Nehemiah continued, “Go and celebrate with a feast of rich foods and sweet drinks, and share gifts of food with people who have nothing prepared. This is a sacred day before our Lord. Don’t be dejected and sad, for the joy of the Lord is your strength!”

Psalm 30:5Weeping may last through the night, but joy comes with the morning.

Romans 12:15Be happy with those who are happy, and weep with those who weep.

By acknowledging the grief of others and even weeping with them, we can assure them that they will again know the “joy of the Lord.”

1 Corinthians 15:51-55Let me reveal to you a wonderful secret. We will not all die, but we will all be transformed! It will happen in a moment, in the blink of an eye, when the last trumpet is blown. For when the trumpet sounds, those who have died will be raised to live forever. And we who are living will also be transformed. For our dying bodies must be transformed into bodies that will never die; our mortal bodies must be transformed into immortal bodies. Then, when our dying bodies have been transformed into bodies that will never die, this Scripture will be fulfilled: “Death is swallowed up in victory. O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?”

We can remind them that death doesn’t have the final word, that God has defeated death, and that all who trust in Christ will live forever.

2 Corinthians 4:17-18Our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever! So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever.

We can remind them that this life with all its “troubles” is short, but God’s glory and our life with him will last forever.

Revelation 21:4“He will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain. All these things are gone forever.”

We can celebrate with them because eventually all tears, death, sorrow, crying, and pain will be gone in God’s eternal Kingdom.