Granger Smith Says ‘Grief is a Gift’: ‘God, Thank You for the Time I Did Have’
By Movieguide® Contributor
Former country singer and author Granger Smith is sharing his thoughts on grief and its relationship with love.
“It hurts. It hurts when we lose somebody,” he said while appearing on Kirk Cameron’s TAKEAWAYS. “It hurts, and sometimes it hurts bad, but we could grieve with hope that there is a future. That this is not our only life. That there is a much better one. This is not our home, and there is nothing more important than that when you’re grieving.”
Smith lost his 3-year-old son River in 2019 in a tragic drowning accident. Following River’s death, Smith left his 24-year career in the music industry and started pursuing a career in ministry.
“Grief is a gift that expresses the value of the depth of our love for someone and gives us reasons to say, ‘God, thank you for the time I did have,’” he continued. “My grief is like a physical manifestation of the reality of the love that God has given us.”
Smith explained that, during the depths of his grief, he began to change the way he prayed.
“Perhaps it’s not the right prayer to only pray for what we want,” he explained. “Instead, early on, I started to think that maybe I should be praying for God’s will, God’s purpose, so that I could move forward and take the next steps according to what He needs for me, not what I want. That thought alone will start to eliminate the question of ‘Why, God, why did you do this to me?’”
Smith wrote a book about his grieving process and the lessons he learned titled, “Like A River: Finding the Faith and Strength to Move Forward After Loss and Heartache.”
“The most important thing about this book is…not navigating grief, even though that’s what the cover says…the real story is the gospel,” he shared. “By reading and by hearing that gospel, I pray that God would do a transformative work with the listener.”
Smith previously spoke about how writing “Like A River” helped him realize he was being called to ministry.
“Saving faith gives you permission to grieve, or be angry, or question or say: ‘God, how, how long will you hide your face from me like that?’” Smith told NBC. “It gives you permission to go: ‘I’m hurting and this really sucks right now, take it from me — I can no longer handle this myself.’ There is such freedom in that. It’s also given me the authority to go to a father who has lost a son and say: ‘Take my hand, we’re moving forward. It’s time.’”
He announced his departure from the world of country music last year on social media, writing, “I just want to glorify God the best way that I can. I want to learn and grow and serve my local church and allow my pastors to equip and affirm those next steps. Lord willing, I want to be used to help people find their purpose.”
Movieguide® previously reported on Smith’s pursuit of ministry:
Country star Granger Smith recently spoke more about his decision to leave country music and pursue ministry in his local church.
“It sounds like a not-very-exciting news story — the story of a guy who had what I always dreamed of having, and turning it back over,” the singer laughed. “I’m turning it back in for a life at the local church. But I believe that that is what I am called to do.”
Smith also talked about the role faith had in his life following the tragic death of his son, River, who passed away in 2019 in a tragic accidental drowning.
“I cannot take credit myself for the radical transformation that the Lord did in my life through this tragedy,” he shared. “Sometimes, when that soil is cultivated, and we have to dig deep, and we can’t find it within ourselves, the Lord comes in and shows Himself in a very profound way.”
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