"Everything Will Be Ok"

One thing i have realized over the past few weeks is that i do not know how to deal with death. I have had two friends of mine who have recently had to go through situations dealing with death and i really don't know what to do.. what to tell them.. or to go about it. Do you tell them it is going to be ok? Knowing that they just Lost someone they loved, cared about, laughed with, joked with, basically spent a portion of their lives with. To tell them it is "going to be ok" in this time can be like putting acid on a wound.. Aren't you basically saying... Life goes on, and eventually you will be ok with their absence, because there is NOTHING you can do about it. So, i try to avoid that phrase. This morning i called my friend Fernando and he informed me that his sister, who was battling cancer, had just passed away. Being that it was 3 in the morning i was a little shocked..My mind was racing on comforting things to say, but all i could think to say was "I'm soo sorry" and was trying to avoid "Everything will be ok" <--But i said Both anyway... His life is like a Novella... I told him i was here for him...but like a novella., i can only sit and watch his life through a square box and telephone calls. I really want to be there for him.. I know its a difficult time for him, But what to do?!?!?! Again i ask.. How do i go about this. My other Friend Mar'Sha's Great Grandmother just passed away also... I really did not know what to do. I thought she had mentally prepared for the passing, but I was wrong. No Matter How much you prepare for someone to die... its never an easy thing to go through.I still do not know what to do.. how to comfort, how to give them a sense of comfort and serenity in this time of grieving. Do I give them space or Always try to be by their side whether it be emotionally or physically. I really do not know.... The pain, the hurt, the loss.. I realize that's one situation I avoid like a plague.