Our Hearts Are Home Podcast — Trusting God in Suffering

On today's podcast, Judi Merriam, an author, speaker, actor, and Jenson's mom, shares her experience of loss and of the hope that she has found in Christ. With transparency and honesty, Judi discusses the difficult journey of loss; the wrestling with God, the searching for answers, the discovery of the truth of God's character and love. Her words bring great encouragement and hope to those who are grieving.

In this message given at the recent Our Hearts Are Home conference, missionary pastor, speaker, author, and bereaved father, Mark Roser, shares his heart and shows us through Scripture, the heart of God. "Enlargement by Grief" (aka Good Grief) is a deep dive into God’s redemptive purposes in allowing grief and sorrow. Because God loves, He knows full well what it feels like to have a heart full of pain. But God can use our greatest sorrow to transform us in ways nothing else can. The Bible has much to say about how God works the worst things in life for our good and the good of others. Listen in and be encouraged.

For those of us who have experienced the pain of child loss, we need to draw near to God now more than ever. However, in the midst of our trauma, God can sometimes feel far away. Questions and confusion naturally arise. If we trusted Him and this horrible event happened, how can we continue to trust Him? Who is this God that allowed this to happen? Does He really care about me? Does it even make a difference? What makes a person cry says a lot about them. We certainly have shed our share of tears while grieving the death of our children. In this session, we will explore the things that brought tears to the eyes of Jesus. By examining these events, we hope to better understand the heart and character of Jesus in a way that will help us embrace His love and trustworthiness and experience His personal presence amidst our sorrow.

In this podcast, Ernie and Karen Richards share the story of their son, Levi, and of the grief journey they have walked since his home-going. Levi was a remarkably talented young man who loved Jesus and was loved deeply by his family and friends. In 2016, without warning, he went to Heaven by suicide. If you are a bereaved parent, we hope you'll find the words of Ernie and Karen to be a comfort and that you will glean new insights that may be useful in your own journey. And if you are listening today and have not lost a child, this episode will help you better know how to come alongside grieving parents in their greatest time of need.

For grieving parents, holidays, such as Thanksgiving and Christmas, can be especially difficult. This podcast airs the audio from a recent webinar that discusses strategies for navigating these special days, and also suggests a host of ideas of how you can honor and remember your loved ones during the holidays. If you've lost someone dear to you, we hope you'll find encouragement and new ideas in this podcast. And if you haven't lost someone, we hope you'll find insights to help equip you to minister to those who have.