Resources by Topic: Grief and Loss

The Bible says this about grief: “And now, dear brothers and sisters, we want you to know what will happen to the believers who have died so you will not grieve like people who have no hope.” 

This is a blast from the past, at least for those of us old enough to remember Dallas Holm and Praise, and his 1977 mega-hit “I Will Rise Again.” I have listened to it multiple times recently, and it takes me back to a crucial time in my life.

One of our church’s Sunday school teachers recently died. We would like to get some resources (book recommendations/links to helpful information) to the parents in our church to help navigate discussions, prayer time, grief, etc. What resources do you recommend?

Your feelings, because of your grief, will be all over the map for a long time to come. They are real, but they won’t always tell the truth. What you read in God’s Word is always trustworthy. Marinate in it.

Far more than our perceived need for communication with our departed loved ones, we need Jesus. In His time and way, we will be reunited with those who have gone before us to Heaven. In the meantime, over and over again in His word, God promises to be with us, to never forsake us, to comfort and lead and guide us.

Randy shares how conversations with Nanci in the time before her death have helped him look forward, with a biblically-grounded imagination, to the great reunion in Heaven. 

In times of distress, it’s easy to feel like God is nowhere to be found. That may be what you feel or think, but our feelings can lie to us, especially when we are experiencing depression. 

For many of us, the list of people we’re longing for reunion with in Heaven is lengthy. But those who have lost children, like Marshall Shelley and his wife Susan, have even more compelling reasons to long for Heaven. His writing beautifully demonstrates an eternal perspective on every human life. Whether or not you’ve lost a child in a miscarriage or after birth, I think you’ll be moved by what he shares. 

Randy joined Rush Witt on the Straight to the Heart Podcast, to share his personal reflections on life, grieving with hope in everyday moments, and the connection to his new booklet Grieving with Hope: Walking with Jesus in Heartbreak, coming out in August 2024 with New Growth Press.  

In this clip from The Straight to the Heart podcast with Rush Witt, Randy shares about his everyday activities, including meeting with area pastors, increased speaking and writingengagements, and his daily companion Gracie the Double Doodle. 

In this clip from The Straight to the Heart podcast with Rush Witt, Randy shares about his wife Nanci: a godly woman, introvert, lover of football, lover of animals, and now in Heaven with Jesus.  

In this clip from The Straight to the Heart podcast with Rush Witt, Randy shares about how his in-depth research on Heaven for his books gave him and Nanci a great basis for talking about Heaven often, especially during her illness.  

In this clip from The Straight to the Heart podcast with Rush Witt, Randy shares about how his view of Heaven has influenced his view of Nanci’s homegoing, and the comfort he experienced while talking with Nanci over the years about the New Earth. 

In this clip from The Straight to the Heart podcast with Rush Witt, Randy shares about the intimacy he experiences with Jesus, and how the friendship of Jesus means more to him than ever.