Grief is part of being a warrior

Though I've never served in the military, I have received a taste of combat training within martial arts.  Life in preparation for combat seems to cycle through long hours of waiting and training only to be followed by intense blink-of-an-eye battles.  And the cycle often repeats depending the tour of duty.

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I agree with Roy King's assessment that as warriors in God’s kingdom, we can experience ministry and spiritual warfare in a similar way.  Our life is divided into:

• Long seasons of "training," "listening," and “waiting” for God to fulfill his plan and answer prayers.
• Intense but usually short periods of struggle or spiritual warfare.
• Grieving the losses we sustain.
• Glorious “tastes” of victory.

As one who struggles with grieving, I can see how it is a necessary step in the process of life in this fallen world.  Without processing and saying goodbye to what we treasured before the battle raged we cannot truly enjoy the victory.  Even worse, we may halt the cycle and miss out on additional "training" from God necessary for the next battle.

(Roy King - Grieving is Saying Goodbye)