Prayer

Meaningful prayer requires putting away the hurt of everyday life. It requires being willing to let down pride, fear, and any shields put up to protect from others. It requires being vulnerable. It requires letting the King of Kings into the heart, where he can change it. Sometimes that is tough. Speaking of pain is often harder than suffering alone. When it seems imopssible to even start trying to communicate the depths of pain in the heart it is most necessary to give that burden to the god who died to take upon him all the sins of the world. If words fail he will listen anyway. He will listen to the silent cries of the heart.
Trust him. Pray to him. He will always catch those who fall towards him.

Loss

Loss and pain are essential. Maybe when we lose somebody it's because we need to learn something. Maybe when that overpowering cloud of pain passes we'll find a world refreshed by the tears that fell. Maybe we'll come through this earth-shattering experience and find that we're okay. Maybe we need to break in order to become stronger. And maybe we just need to learn things from people and then let go when it's time.