Years ago Barry and I—and our Ragdoll cat, Abigail—made the move from Nashville to Orange County, California. We estimated that the cross-country drive would take thirty hours, so we decided to drive ten a day, spending only two nights in a hotel as we headed west.
Abigail began the trip in a crate in the backseat, but that only lasted for about two hours. That was all of her pitiful howling that Barry and I could take, so I let her out. She settled down on the back window ledge, and peace was restored.
When it began to get dark, we decided to stop at the first hotel we saw. Not knowing what their pet policy was and not wanting to ask, Barry suggested that I shove Abigail up the front of my sweater as we walked through the lobby to our room.
Let me just say that if her tail wasn’t sticking out, her head was! If I managed to hide her head, suddenly I was dealing with the tail and a paw. I just could not keep that cat hidden quietly under my sweater.
Well, I’ve discovered in my own life that grief and pain are like that. We can try to bury them, we can do our best to push them far beneath the surface, but they don’t cooperate. They wrestle back.
When one of my friends experienced a significant and painful loss, she told a grief counselor that she simply didn’t have time to work through her pain. The counselor said, “You can grieve now and let your emotions out, or you can let those powerful feelings slowly leak out for the rest of your life.”
At times we can be afraid to feel the full extent of our pain for fear it will overwhelm us. But hear God’s promise: “The LORD is close to the brokenhearted; he rescues those whose spirits are crushed” (Psalm 34:18). Furthermore, God has given us the Holy Spirit to be our Comforter, but we can only be comforted when we acknowledge that we are hurting.
So when we’re hurting, let’s choose to give ourselves time to grieve. We don’t need to be afraid to let the waves of sorrow hit us. Oh, we may feel pain like we’ve never felt before, but God won’t let us deal with that pain alone. God is with us. Always.
Five Minutes in the Word 
Why is your heart sad?
1 Samuel 1:8 ESV
Sorrow is better than laughter, for sadness has a refining influence on us.
Ecclesiastes 7:3
Do not be afraid, for I have ransomed you. I have called you by name; you are mine. When you go through deep waters, I will be with you. When you go through rivers of difficulty, you will not drown. When you walk through the fire of oppression, you will not be burned up; the flames will not consume you.
Isaiah 43:1–2
From the ends of the earth I call to you, I call as my heart grows faint; lead me to the rock that is higher than I. For you have been my refuge, a strong tower against the foe.
Psalm 61:2–3 NIV
We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies.
2 Corinthians 4:8–10 ESV