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This is part of the series People in the Bible Who Lost a Child . In this episode, we are going to look at two dads, who had their children returned to them while still on this earth; Jacob in the Old Testament, and Jairus in the New Testament. It would be easy for us to compare the fact that we didn’t get to have our children back and be bitter or angry about it. But that would prevent us from se...

This week we are looking at Naomi, in the book of Ruth. Naomi lost her husband and both of her sons. She became a bitter woman, blaming God for her troubled life. She doesn’t realize how much God is at work behind the scenes, and eventually is able to declare that God never stopped showing his grace to her. Sandwiched in the middle of all this, is Naomi’s daughter-in-law, Ruth. They have a very un...

Last week we started looking at Job through the eyes of a parent who has also lost a child. This week continues this fascinating study, starting with of Job’s friends, whom he calls “miserable comforters”. There are many things we can relate to in the book of Job, much more than I realized until I dug into the book of Job for the purpose of this series in looking at parents in the Bible who have l...

We are still in the series Parents in the Bible Who Lost a Child , and this week it’s time to look at Job. You are probably tempted to skip this one because it’s easy to pass right by him, thinking we already know Job’s story. (He lost everything, had friends who didn’t do a good job of comforting him, and then God gave him everything back…Whatever…!) Please stay with me for this one b...

This is episode 52, which means this episode completes a full year of the Grieving Parents Sharing Hope podcast. Because of this milestone, we are taking a break from the current series to share some thoughts about the difference a year can make. Those of us who have lost a child from this earth are painfully aware of this. Usually after the death of our child, we can’t see any movement toward hea...

Since Easter is in just a few days, it seems like a good time to look at Mary, Jesus’ mother, as a parent who lost her child. I had never taken the time to see Mary’s life through the eyes of a grieving parent. But as I began to study it out for this episode, I was amazed to discover, based on what are told about her life, how many ways we can relate to Mary as a bereaved parent. Even beyond that,...

Did you realize that King Solomon was a rainbow baby? The scriptures that surround this situation can be confusing, and even hurtful, especially to those who have lost an infant. Podcast host (and ordained minister), Laura Diehl, spends most of the time on this episode doing her best to untangle these verses, giving listeners new eyes to see and know that God cares, and that He always has a plan f...

In this new series, we will be looking at parents in the Bible who had a child die. I don’t know about you, but there are so many things in the Bible that I see through new eyes after my daughter Becca died, and one of those areas is reading about the parents who lost a child and are recorded in God’s Word. I find it pretty amazing that the first death in the Bible is one of the worst things that...

As I was doing some studying in the Word, looking at some of the parents in the Bible who had lost a child, I came across a scripture that just seemed to go totally against what I believe about God, and even what I have shared with others about God’s goodness, and how He doesn’t cause death. I told Dave what I had just read and decided to put the podcast microphone between us to record our discuss...

Sometimes we know what we want to do to help our child leave a legacy, but we don’t know how to get started with raising money to support that cause. Professional fund raiser, Mary Valloni, and host, Laura Diehl, continue their talk from last week, and Mary shares some thoughts and encouragement in this area. Two things discussed are: It’s important to have clarity so you don’t push pe...

The last two episodes in this series on How to Help Your Child Leave a Legacy are with professional fundraiser, Mary Valloni. Since many of you are doing things in honor and memory of your children that involves raising money for your cause, I thought it would be helpful to get some tips from someone who has lots of experience in this area. Mary has been on staff and raised millions of dollars for...

This interview with Marcella Johnson is a continuation of last week’s talk (episode 44). In this discussion, Marcella shares about how she developed The Comfort Cub (the first weighted therapeutic bear) after the death of her son, who died in her arms fifteen minutes after being born. I personally know a mom who lost her daughter during pregnancy well over twenty years ago, who started weeping whe...

Laura’s guest for this and the following episode is Marcella Johnson. Over twenty years ago, Marcella knew she would be losing her son, George, at birth because of a rare, fatal disease that would not allow him to live outside the womb. This interview with Marcella is part of the “How to Help Your Child Leave a Legacy” series. But the discussion surrounding the death of Marcella’s son was so rich...

Many parents who have lost a child either think about writing a book or have been told they should write a book. Obviously, it’s a great way to tell your child’s story and to help him or her continue to live on in the hearts and minds of others. But how do you do it? Where do you start? Who do you go to for help? As a published author of seven books, host Laura Diehl is joined by Sara Nelson...

Rick Kauffman calls himself a fixer and as a fixer, he was a total failure after his three-year-old daughter, Kelsey, drowned in a public swimming pool, eight feet in front of a life guard. Rick started getting involved with water safety, but he quit as things in his life went downhill. Rick ended up divorced, was a failure as a dad, and even attempted suicide. For eight years he let the darkness...

This second episode of the Helping Your Child Leave a Legacy series is with guest, Crystal Webster, who lost her one and only child eight hours after birth. Several years later, after coming out of the debilitating darkness of grief, she discovered something she could do that would help others who found themselves in that same place, be able to “pay it forward” when they came out of their own dark...

Today is an interview with the first guest for the How to Leave Your Child a Legacy Series. Patti has had quite the journey for over twelve years since the death of her daughter, Megan. I am sure you will take away some valuable thoughts, especially the word of encouragement that hope and helping others, go hand-in-hand.   Patricia Small grew up in the beautiful upper peninsula of Michigan. W...

We can make sure our child’s legacy continues to live on in a way that makes a difference in this world, even if he or she never took a breath outside the womb. This episode is laying the foundation for the series Helping Your Child Leave a Legacy. For the next few weeks we will be talking to parents who have done everything from starting a local support group, to raising money for a cause, to wri...

As we start 2020, we decided to use this episode to look back and listen to a few minutes of each of the top five podcasts of 2019. (To go directly to these episodes to hear the full discussion, use the links in the “Links referred to” section below.) The very first Grieving Parents Sharing Hope podcast went out on April 23rd, and that first one ended up being the fifth most popular. T...

The new year is now upon us. For most people, anything that is new evokes a measure of excitement with possibilities, especially a new year. But for those who have had to face the darkness of the death of their child, “new” can bring almost a panicked feeling, as if we are leaving our child behind. This especially applies to the new year for those who lost their child within the past y...

  We all need a deeper revelation of God’s love for us, but especially those who are questioning God’s love after the death of their child. There are so many things that show God’s love. We just need to have our eyes and hearts open to see and receive them. In this episode, Laura does her best to point the listeners in the right direction to have this happen.   Links referred to in this...

Joy is something that can elude us for a long time after the death of our child. Not just that undercurrent that is a peaceful, confident hope, but joy from good and wonderful things that are going on around us. Joy is a fruit of the Holy Spirit who is always at work in us. But what about when we aren’t seeing or feeling the Holy Spirit at work in us, much less seeing any fruit of joy, either now...

Advent is a time of waiting. Many people are waiting for Christmas with joyful anticipation, mixed with frazzled busyness. But for many of us who have faced the death of our child, it is a time of waiting for the season to just… be…over. God knew from the very beginning of time that we would struggle with feeling so hopeless in our grief, and He did something about it. He sent His own Son to becom...

The end-of-the-year holidays can be brutal for those who have lost a child, especially those first few years. It can feel like a continual slap-in-the-face reminder of who is not here with us. Even if we have other children or grandchildren, a loving spouse, a great job or are part of a fulfilling ministry, it feels almost impossible to want to be part of the festivities. It just isn’t in us. Join...

It took podcast host, Laura Diehl, almost four years after her daughter died to go to a conference for bereaved moms because she didn’t think it would help her at all to be around a bunch of others who were a mess like she was. But when she finally went, Laura discovered it was just the opposite; it was wonderful and healing to be with others who understood, and she got to talk about Becca with ot...