Our Greatest Weapon in Grief
“Praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication.
To that end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints.”
Ephesians 6:18
Prayer—the direct line to our General. Without His strength, our amor is useless in battle. Paul knew that our greatest need in battle is to go to God early and often for help. Through prayer, we call upon God's strength and remain dependent on Him. God wants to be God for us. He wants to be our hope and defender, our refuge and rock, the One who fights for us. The command to pray, ...
Welcome Grief
Paul reminds us in his letter to the church in Thessalonica that we do "not grieve as others do who have no hope" (1 Thess. 4:13). But what exactly does that mean? In this series, we explore what it looks like to honor God in our grief and examine the ways we can choose to grieve with hope.
Within a few months of losing our son Jacob just seven hours after he was born, I was walking to the car with my husband and I looked at him saying, “I cannot do this anymore.” Actually, that wasn’t the only time I said that either. I was exhausted. Not only had I carried him ...
In the Word: The Lord is There
Welcome to Hope Mommies’ In the Word devotionals. Over the next several weeks, we will be looking at different names of God found in Scripture, and how these different aspects of who He is offer 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 study these names of God along with us!
“Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will ...
How the Truth of God Strengthens Us in our Grief
When Max died, I had so many feelings. Feelings of anger, disbelief, confusion, and doubt in my own body. I was sadder than I have ever been in all my life. Typically I’m not a big feeler; I don’t really experience high highs or low lows. Instead, I stay pretty even-keeled at all times. But my son’s death truly knocked me down and forced me to feel all the feelings, and if I’m being honest, I really didn’t like it. I didn’t want to feel those feelings. I had gone nearly 28 years without feeling a whole lot, and I liked it that way. It was easier that way, less ...
Guarding Our Hearts in Grief
A few weeks ago, my husband and I sat down on the couch together to rest after a long day. Just moments after our backs hit the cushions, we heard the sound of heavy footsteps overhead. Assuming that one of our children was out of bed when they shouldn’t be, I walked upstairs to assess the situation, only to find them all sleeping heavily.
The footsteps continued, and we soon realized that an unwelcome group of visitors must have made their way into our attic while we were away earlier that afternoon. After a quick check around the house, we discovered that our garage ...
When Grief Feels Like Loneliness
After college, I moved to Chicago for a change of pace. I wanted—and needed —to spread my wings, abandon my safety zone of family for a time, and learn what it meant to fully depend on the Lord. Being 22, I thought the idea of learning loneliness sounded so romantic in a tragic sort of way. I pictured myself strolling the streets of the windy city, coffee mug in hand, with a cute sweater and scarf and with the soundtrack of Natalie Merchant crooning in the background.
What I learned is that loneliness is not romantic. Coffee and cute scarves are too expensive ...
Finding God in the Valley
Pain. Deep, deep pain. We all experience pain on many different levels. The pain of losing a child is crippling, and the truth is that most are adding this immense pain to the previous trials, failures, hurts, and wounds we had before we ever lost a child.
We experience many types of hurt. Some of us had poor childhoods, not knowing the true love of a parent. Some of us have experienced abuse in different forms. We've experienced heartache and sorrow. We have insecurities. We live in a broken world with broken hearts. Losing a child can add on so many emotions to the ...
In the Word, The Lord, My Shepherd
Welcome to Hope Mommies’ In the Word devotionals. Over the next several weeks, we will be looking at different names of God found in Scripture, and how these different aspects of who He is offer 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 study these names of God along with us!
"The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
He makes me lie down in ...
