Genesis 7:17-24

Genesis 7:17-24
Contemporary English Version (CEV) 

  We all know of the forty days Noah was on the Ark when it was raining.  What's easy to forget is that it was another one hundred and fifty days before the water even started going down.  Noah wasn't on the Ark for just forty days -- it was months and months of hardship, surely accompanied by big questions.
  When people we know are going through a hard time, there is often a very acute portion of that.  If they have lost a loved one, the few days that surround that event will be immensely difficult.  After that, it's easy for the community to move on, while the individual is still stuck in a place of sorrow and grieving, only without the previous immense support of the community.  It can feel pretty lonely on those waves.
  So if you know someone who has endured a loss, whether it is a loved one or a job or something else, realize that the moment of crisis gives way to a slow challenge that they will endure every day.  Reach out to them with  your encouragement, even if it is months after the event, because they are likely still struggling to move forward, even though the rest of the community likely has progressed.