Grief Devotional
Join Catholic author and speaker Laura Kelly Fanucci in this powerful devotional for anyone who is grieving the loss of a loved one. Laura guides us through the journey of grief, blending personal stories, Scripture, and prayer to offer hope and healing. Each day includes a passage from Scripture that focuses on a different aspect of the grieving process. Perfect for small groups, Laura helps us rediscover God's presence in our grief. Learn more about Laura's ministry: http://hallow.com/fanucci
30 sesiones
1God's Own GriefWelcome to the grief devotional with Laura Fanucci. Today, Laura unpacks the story of Jesus' grief at the death of Lazarus (John 11:1-6, 17, 30-44). We'll see how how this story is about God standing beside us and weeping with us.Laura Fanucci
2Does God Cause Grief?Laura Fanucci asks the question that many of us have likely wondered about: Does God cause brief? We turn to the Book of Lamentations for the answer (Lamentations 3:17-33).Laura Fanucci
3When You’re OverwhelmedLaura Fanucci challenges us to bring our questions and our hardest emotions to God in prayer. Can we really do it? The Psalms will show us how (Psalms 6, 25, 31, 42, 88).Laura Fanucci
4How to LamentFor thousands of years the Psalms have helped grieving Christians turn to God in their hardest times. Today, Laura Fanucci shows how Psalm 31 teaches us how to lament.Laura Fanucci
5Turning To Our Lady of SorrowsLaura Fanucci will explain how Mary is an example for us as we grieve. Today we look at the very beginning of Mary’s story in the Gospel of Luke with the Presentation in the Temple (Luke 2:22-35).Laura Fanucci
6Is God-With-Us, Even Now?Laura Fanucci teaches us how to sit with Jesus as Emmanuel, God with us, even in grief. We’ll look at the story from the Gospel of Matthew (Matthew 1:18-25) and how the Son of God who was given to us on Christmas is really God-with-us for always, every single day of our lives.Laura Fanucci
7Telling the Truth about GriefLaura Fanucci will reflect on the story of Hannah from the Old Testament (1 Samuel 1:4-18) and how she came to the temple, to pour out her heart to God in sorrow. We’ll learn what Hannah’s story and prayer has to teach us about the nature of grief.Laura Fanucci
8The End of DeathWhen we are grieving, it can help to lift our eyes from this world and its suffering to the glory that awaits us. Today, Laura Fanucci will pray with words from Isaiah 25:6-10 as we reflect on God’s promises.Laura Fanucci
9The Promise of Long Life?Laura Fanucci continues to pray with Isaiah, and asks what it means that God promises abundant life to all people, even though we know not everyone gets this here on earth. The passage from Isaiah 65:19-25 will give us a vision of peace, and we’ll see how the end of grief is a central part of God’s promise.Laura Fanucci
10How to Grieve Apart & TogetherLaura Fanucci will unpack the story of the two main women in the Book of Ruth (Ruth 1:6-22), to see how they grieved apart and together.Laura Fanucci
11Everyone’s Advice In GriefToday we will turn to the Book of Job—a book that speaks directly to God about grief, seeking answers but finding something more: God’s own presence. Laura Fanucci reminds us that we are always and everywhere in the presence of God, even in our grief. (Job 2:11-3:1, 13:2-5, 16:2-6, 20)Laura Fanucci
12When God Answers (Or Not)We continue in the Book of Job for one more day, as Laura Fanucci recalls what God has to say in response to Job’s laments (Job 38:1-13, 16-18). We’ll unpack how God actually replies to him, which many of us wish God would do for us.Laura Fanucci
13Lord, If You Had Been Here!Laura Fanucci invites us to pray with two people who loved Jesus deeply—Mary and Martha—as we reflect on what they can teach us about grief. She will show us how, like Martha to Jesus in John 11:17-28, we can take a moment to quiet ourselves and center our thoughts on Christ.Laura Fanucci
14Take Your Time To Come To GodLaura Fanucci will continue with the story of Martha and Mary (John 11:28-37) as we turn to what Mary says when she gets her turn to speak with Jesus, as a grieving sibling. These two encounters give us a striking picture of how God might respond to us in our own sorrow.Laura Fanucci
15When We Grieve DifferentlyLaura Fanucci reflects the differences in grieving. We’ll hear from the Gospel of John (John 19:25-27, 20:1-9) about Mary the Mother of God and John the Beloved Disciple standing at the foot of the cross. Then, we’ll hear about Mary Magdalene and Peter and John at the empty tomb. Laura will show us how each person reacts differently to what happens.Laura Fanucci
16It’s OK To CryToday, Laura Fanucci will look more closely at the idea that we all grieve differently—and even that it’s ok to weep, looking at the story of King David crying at the death of his son (2 Samuel 18:31-33, 19:1-4). The king’s tears and cries—his outward mourning for his son—leads to communal mourning. David is unashamed to express his deep love and grief, and his public weeping draws in others as well.Laura Fanucci
17What To Do When We Can't PrayLaura Fanucci explores the concept of the Holy Spirit as our intercessor. We will look at how Saint Paul teaches us about the Spirit as intercessor in his Letter to the Romans (Romans 8:18-27), and how it has profound meaning for our grief.Laura Fanucci
18Did I Miss The Miracle?Laura Fanucci will unpack the story of Jairus’ daughter and the bleeding woman in the Gospel of Mark (Mark 5:21-43). Jesus works in unexpected ways here: he heals the little girl after her death, not before like her father begged when she was sick. Laura shows how this Gospel story speaks to what so many of us have experienced: the feeling that other people’s prayers are answered while ours are not.Laura Fanucci
19Let This Cup Pass Me ByLaura Fanucci reads the account of Jesus in the garden of Gethsemane (Mark 14:32-42), and we see how his own anguish relates to our grief. Today, as we listen to the Gospel about Jesus praying in Gethsemane, we might think about the times we too have prayed, “God, please let this pass me by. Please don’t let this happen to me!” But we might also remember times when we have prayed, “Not my will, but yours be done. If I can’t change this, please help me through it.”Laura Fanucci
20How to Keep VigilLaura Fanucci will explore the story of the women who keep vigil at the foot of the cross (Luke 23:27-49). What can they teach us about holding vigil through our own grief? We will gain insight into our own grief by viewing the women who stayed faithful to Jesus along the road to Calvary, all the way to the cross.Laura Fanucci
21Why Have You Abandoned Me?Laura Fanucci asks the question “Do our prayers really work?” Today’s session will guide us to meditate on Jesus’ own prayer from the cross (Matthew 27: 45-56), as Jesus cries from the cross: “My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?”Laura Fanucci
22Our Need for RitualsLaura Fanucci will talk about the story of Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus, two strong men of faith who came to mourn for Jesus, caring for his body after he died. Laura will explore how John 19:31-42 highlights our need for rituals—for ways to make sense of our loss with concrete prayers and practices.Laura Fanucci
23Finding Hope after LossLaura Fanucci asks the question “What does it mean to keep going, and who can help us?”She will encourage us to find hope after loss as we pray with the women at the tomb, to learn what they can show us about life after loss (Mark 16:1-8, 9-11).Laura Fanucci
24Grief’s Unexpected RevelationsToday, we will linger at the tomb with Mary Magdalene in the Gospel of John (John 20:10-18), as Laura Fanucci recounts the story of a great woman of faith. Laura shows us how Mary Magdalene was a woman who was willing to let grief teach her.Laura Fanucci
25The Gift of ForgivenessLaura Fanucci will unpack the resurrection story from the Gospel of John (John 21:4-17) about Peter and Jesus, when Jesus appears to his disciples on the lakeshore, and has an important conversation with Peter about their past and their future. Laura will show us how we can learn from the way Christ offered Peter forgiveness in his own grief.Laura Fanucci
26Comfort Of The SacramentsToday, Laura Fanucci will explore the comfort of the sacraments, and how she should remember that the Good Shepherd always takes care of our every need. Today’s reading will be seeing Psalm 23 in a new way, as through the eyes of someone who is grieving.Laura Fanucci
27Mourn with Those Who MournLaura Fanucci asks “What does it mean to ‘Mourn with those who mourn?’” We’ll listen to a passage from St. Paul’s second letter to the Corinthians (2 Cor 4:7-12, 16-18, 5:1-5). Paul speaks of the suffering of this life that we experience in our bodies, but also the promise of eternal life that we cling to in our souls.Laura Fanucci
28Grieving With HopeLaura Fanucci will continue with more wisdom from Saint Paul, this time about how to grieve with hope (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18). We’ll learn what St. Paul teaches us about hope, even in the face of death. The early Christians were no strangers to suffering, and they had as many hard questions about death and loss as we do. So Paul makes sure to remind them that Christians are people of hope.Laura Fanucci
29How to Keep GoingLaura Fanucci will unpack the story of the disciples on the road to Emmaus after Jesus died (Luke 24:13-35), and ask how we can keep going in grief, too. We are reminded that this is a walk of two people who are grieving deeply: grieving the death of their loved one and leader, grieving the death of their dreams and hopes, grieving because they have no idea what to do next. And right then, in the middle of their walking, Jesus meets them on their way.Laura Fanucci
30No More Death. Promise.Laura Fanucci shares one of the most beautiful parts of the Book of Revelation (Revelation 21:1-7), which tells us what will happen when Christ returns. We will pray together for the last time, opening up the last book of the Bible and reflecting on God’s promise of new life: all that comes next.Laura Fanucci