Journey to Joy:  Nativity's Grief Recovery Program

Many churches such as Nativity offer grief programs because society does not have universal protocols for issues such as death, dying and grieving.  Grief is an intensely personal, frightening, emotional and sometimes confusing experience for mourners and often equally so for those around them.

Nativity offers an outlet through which one can learn to understand and release feelings of grief.  This offering is Journey to Joy, a participatory grief recovery program that is based in scripture and is grounded in the belief that Jesus Christ is the source of all healing.  It is also based in the understanding that healing requires the participation of the individual in grief, allowing for our God-given freedom to choose joy for the rest of our lives. Journey to Joy is not an ongoing support group nor is it counseling.  

The Journey to Joy experience at Nativity is a progressive six-week curriculum presented in weekly two-hour sessions.  There is a course in the spring and in the fall.  Enrollment is limited to provide the benefits and intimacy of a small group.  Confidentiality is required.  Certified facilitators lead each session with clergy present.  This is a serious recovery program that requires work and commitment.  It is not a "come and go" group.  There is a fee for the course with scholarships available, as no one is turned away for inability to pay.

Through Journey to Joy, Nativity offers a starting point for healing to persons whose lives are negatively impacted by the death of a loved one, whether the death occurred recently or many years ago.  If grief has negatively impacted your life in any way, we invite you to begin or enhance your recovery through this program.  We invite you to regain life's joy.  We invite you to begin today.

Contact Pastor Susan Snook about participation in this program.