What To Do When You’re Facing Loss

...But David strengthened himself in the Lord his God. (1 Samuel 30:6)
 
In 1 Samuel chapter 30, we read about David and his men as they were returning home from a defunct battle with the Philistines. They arrived home only to find that while they were away, the Amalekites had broken into their land, stolen their material possessions, burned their homes and worst of all, captured their families.  
 
The Bible says they took captive the women and children. Anyone that was left at home, who was unable to fight—their disabled, wounded, young, vulnerable—their enemy, the Amalekites, took captive. The text is tailored to teach us how David and how we ourselves can take what the enemy designs to break us and use it as an occasion to build and bless us.  
 
After telling us about all of these horrible things that happened for David, things take a turn for the better when, in the midst and in the face of all of this tragedy and loss, David takes inventory of what he has left. I actually found this quite shocking. Rather than being overwhelmed by the totality of his losses recorded in verses 3-5, and they were many, rather than being frightened by the great danger referenced in verse 6, the Bible says at the end of verse 6 that David strengthens himself in the Lord, and in verse 7, he asks the priest Abiathar for the ephod.  
 
In other words, David loses his property, his possessions, his family, everything, but rather than being consumed with the enormity of his losses, he spends time relying on the one thing the Amalekites could not take from him and that was his faith and his relationship with God.
 
So if you’re dealing with loss today, if you’re struggling because you feel like everything has been taken from you, remember that no one can take away your faith. No one can separate you from God. And no one can terminate your relationship with Him. He will always be with you, amidst every heartbreak, struggle, frustration, and loss. That’s a guarantee.