Grief is something we all experience at some point in life when we lose someone or something of great value. It may be a relative or friend, job or career, home or something else. Everyone processes grief differently though for some it may develop into toxic grief, especially if we come under a spirit of grief or spirit of death. Toxic grief can feel like a cloud of heaviness or oppression over us, and this may be addressed as we allow the Lord to minister to our spirit and emotions.
Grief is a natural process as we find ourselves journeying through the valley of shadow of death (Psalm 23:4) and is meant to be a transitional season and not something that defines us or becomes our identity. The key to moving forward is to let go of the person or thing we have become attached to and to release the emotions of loss, guilt, shock, loneliness, fear, pain or unforgiveness etc to the Lord.
Loss of a Loved One
There was a lady who had chronic lower back pain. On further questioning it transpired that her lower back pain started twelve years ago around the time a close friend had died of cancer. She thought she had dealt with the grief and didn’t link it to the pain in her back, but as we prayed she cried aloud as her emotional pain was being released. I sensed she was to break the soul-ties with her friend and any vows she had made, such as to be best friends forever. As she did, she was fully healed and set free of her lower back pain. With a huge smile on her face she could now move her back in every direction.
An African lady was very distressed for she had lost her family to sickness and disease. She had no-one to help her and I sensed she was imprisoned in the valley of shadow of death. The Spirit of the Lord came upon me as I took authority over the spirit of grief and despair that was upon her, and declared over her Isaiah 61:3 ‘His oil of gladness instead of mourning and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair’. Instantly, she lifted up her arms and hands and looked upwards as she gave God thanks and praise. Her countenance changed as she became full of His joy. She was not only comforted but had received a garment of praise and His oil of gladness.
A lady was still grieving the loss of her husband many years after his death and couldn’t let him go. As a result she was living in the past and unable to move on. After we had a chat, she was willing to release her emotions to the Lord and give her husband to Him. She had made a vow to have no-one but him or never leave him, and I sensed she couldn’t move on until this was broken. After she broke these vows and renounced
the spirit of grief and death, the oppression immediately lifted and she felt a freedom to move on and start a new chapter in her life.
A friend had a sense of grief in his heart though he didn’t know where this grief was coming from. As we asked the Lord to shine His light on the root to the grief, the man was taken back to his mother’s womb and saw he had a twin brother. His twin brother had died in the womb and he saw Jesus come and take his brother. He was angry that Jesus took his brother, so he gave his anger and grief to the Lord, as he released his brother to Him. He felt a peace when he realised the Lord was with him and hadn’t abandoned him.
A lady’s father had died when she was a little child and as a result she had suffered with rejection most of her life. During the ministry, she realised it was the result of the death of her father. She felt rejected and angry towards her father for leaving her because she couldn’t understand at a young age why he did this. Then she realised it wasn’t his will to leave her but the result of the sickness. As she gave her perceived rejection and anger to the Lord and forgave her father for leaving her, she was set free from her grief along with her sense of rejection and anger. In exchange she received the love of her Heavenly Father and His peace.
Dr Angela Walker was a Consultant Paediatrician when God called her to the mission field with Iris Global in Mozambique & South Sudan, where she encountered the healing power of God ‘on the job’. Since her return to England she has written several books on healing and is the Founder of THEO Ministries. For more information visit www.theoministries.com