Q: Did My Baby Die So I Would Become More Holy?
This Q&A series is intended to help you take steps forward in wisdom. Lay your questions before Scripture with us; find in the ashes that wisdom “will place on your head a graceful garland; she will bestow on you a beautiful crown” (Prov. 4:9). What questions about grief, God, or the Bible do you have right now? Contact us here.
In the wake of my son Max’s death, as I was stumbling through my grief, trying to make sense of this great and unexpected loss, I had a friend “encourage” me with a passage of Scripture.
“In this ...
How Can We Walk in Joy this Mother’s Day?
Every year when Mother’s Day rolls around, my Facebook feed is full of people honoring their mothers. Sprinkled among the “odes to mom” are those lamenting the loss of their mothers. Then, there are also those who have lost their children. My Facebook feed is a mix of joy and sorrow.
At churches on Mother’s Day, moms are often honored by giving them a rose, or asking them to stand to be acknowledged. I’ve seen the Hope Mommy start to stand, and then sit back down because no one knows she’s a mom.
On a day that is supposed to be celebratory and honoring to ...
Caitlin’s Story
Eleanor “Ellie” Love Kropchuk was the most beautiful surprise. In March 2017, my husband, Matthew, and I were so excited to find out she was on the way to join big brother Timothy (three years old) and big sister Caroline (20 months). Since I already have two children, pregnancy was nothing new for me. But Ellie was different. My doctor even commented at one point, as we laughed together about how active Ellie always was, that this pregnancy was just different than the others. Around seven months into my pregnancy, I created a playlist that I would listen to during my ...
More of Him
As I look back over the past four years since I first began this painful journey through loss, I realize that I have experienced more of Jesus than I would have been ready to embrace had I not walked through this valley of grief. Because this valley has led me straight to the heart of God, and it has been because of this sorrow that I have been able to, in some small way, identify with Christ’s sorrow.
These four years have pushed me further and deeper into the embrace of my loving God, and into a position of deep security and peace in the arms of the One who knows what ...
In the Word: God is Faithful
Welcome to Hope Mommies’ In the Word devotionals. Over the next several weeks, we will be looking at different characteristics of God—specifically reflecting on how each aspect of His character offers us hope in the midst of our grief. As we study together, we encourage you to use the comments as a place to dialogue with us about what you are learning and share your answers to the questions below. We pray that you hearts will be encouraged as you dig into the infinitely beautiful character of God along with us!
“For the ...
Q: Can I Pray to My Baby?
This Q&A series is intended to help you take steps forward in wisdom. Lay your questions before Scripture with us; find in the ashes that wisdom “will place on your head a graceful garland; she will bestow on you a beautiful crown” (Prov. 4:9). What questions about grief, God, or the Bible do you have right now? Contact us here.
So often when we have a loved one die, it is very common to hear words like, “I know they are looking down and watching over us.” While this may seem comforting, is it accurate? Are our babies in heaven ...
Meg’s Story
I got into my car, shaking, and responded to my doctor’s voicemail requesting me to call her personal line so that I might talk to her that evening. That Friday evening. A week prior to this, I had chosen to take a voluntary, non-invasive blood test on a whim, and some results were flagged.
My doctor mentioned words I had never heard, and I scrambled to write anything down on the back of the one receipt I found. It was my first brush with such grief.
I had experienced some loss before, and had already had a few rocky appointments with my OB. But five days later, I ...
Known
“Imagine a priceless vase or ornament is dropped on the floor and smashed to pieces. The woman who loved it kneels down. She picks up the pieces, one by one. She looks at each one in detail, turning it round, as if to remember where it once belonged. The vase was loved and so when it was shattered, every piece was worth picking up, no matter how small. A grieving person will often want to talk about the smallest detail of their loss. It is as if every broken piece is taken up and wept over. When you listen, you may feel that the detail was small, but it is part of ...
In the Word: God is Holy
Welcome to Hope Mommies’ In the Word devotionals. Over the next several weeks, we will be looking at different characteristics of God—specifically reflecting on how each aspect of His character offers us hope in the midst of our grief. As we study together, we encourage you to use the comments as a place to dialogue with us about what you are learning and share your answers to the questions below. We pray that you hearts will be encouraged as you dig into the infinitely beautiful character of God along with us!
“For thus says the One who is high and ...
Adopting After Loss
Each child gone ahead from among us is a precious person made in the image of God—and all having been made into Hope Moms, we together declare motherhood in each of our journeys. We are eager to go above and beyond in showing honor and love for one another (Rom. 12:10, 15). Through this series, we honor each other’s experiences of motherhood in love through our shared God of hope.
When my husband, Kevin, and I married nearly 6 years ago, we both knew that we wanted adoption to be a part of our how our family would form. But like many families, how adoption came ...
