Grieve, Mourn & Wail is not the name of Grunge band, nor is it the name of a law firm. It is a command from James to his readers.

Who were the readers? Look in James 1:1. He was writing to the 12 tribes of Israel who had been dispersed throughout the world. They had scattered due to persecution.

In their scattering, many of them forgot the things of God and turned toward the worldly pleasures and sinful lifestyles. Word had gotten back to James about these things and now he was writing to warn them and to challenge them to draw near to God.

In his instructions, he encouraged them to Grieve, Mourn & Wail. These were words of repentance. To repent meant to turn away from something, in this case, they were to turn away from sin and return to God. Thus, the instructions to “draw near to God and He will draw near to you.”

Grieve refers to being miserable. James wanted his readers to be miserable in their sin because their sin had separated them from God. They were drawn away from God by their sin.

Mourn refers to a passionate grief that cannot be hidden. James was not going to make it easy for them. They had been public in their rejection of God, now it was time to be public in their repentance. There are no secret agents in God’s Kingdom

Wail was to be result of passionate grief. Just as laughter and joy had been part of their sinful activities now, so should wailing be as they come to the realization of what their sinful choices had caused.

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Grieve, Mourn & Wail was not a prescription for the Christian life. Unfortunately, I’ve known folks who thought it was to be lived that way. But, once sin is dealt with, and we have repented or turned away from our sin, the love, peace, and joy of the Lord are to become what marks our lives. We are free from the bondage of sin; free to be near to God; and free to be the men and women God created us to be. And we are free to experience the abundant life God has prepared for us.

The question for us to deal with is, are there things we have allowed to creep into our life that have drawn us away from God? Are there things we need to Grieve, Mourn & Wail about as we draw near to Him?

What has robbed you of the joy of the Lord? What has robbed you of peace with God? And what has robbed you of the hope you once knew?

James would tell us to wash our hands, purify our hearts, grieve, mourn & wail and God will draw near to us.

We need to take seriously. It separates us from God. And when we discover the sin in our lives, we need to Grieve, Mourn & Wail!

Always in Pursuit!

Don