Path Forward - 4. God's Heart Breaks for the Living

God’s Heart Breaks for the Living

By: Brandon Haines

He took her gently,

not in thunder, but in mercy.

No more pain.

No more wires.

Just grace.

And I stood there,

eyes dry, until the silence cracked.
Because God only cries for the living—
for the ones left to carry the ache.

I believe in signs now.

In feathers on the porch.

In dreams that feel like visits.

In the way her voice still hums in my chest when I pray.

But I’ve got scars.

Not the kind you see.

The kind that whispers,

“You should’ve done more.”

The kind that screams when the house is quiet and the bottle calls my name.

I’ve walked through withdrawals—

not from pills,

but from pretending.

From silence.

From the lie that crying is failure.

I’ve learned to bleed in testimony, not in shame.

And I remember God’s will—

how it showed up in a boy with braces and a crooked smile,

teaching me that broken can still be beautiful.

So, I write. I lead. I cry. I heal.

Because the more it hurts, the more I loved.

And I will not numb that truth.

God only cries for the living. So, I let Him cry with me.