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GPS Hope

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February 20, 2024 by Laura Diehl 1 Comment

248: We Can Be Both Broken and Beautiful

When Laura’s daughter died, she remembers feeling so very shattered that she did not think it was possible to find all the pieces, much less have God put them all back together. But as she continued this unwanted journey, she began to see and understand that brokenness can become something beautiful.

In this episode, Laura’s hope and prayer is that each listener will be able to have their own hope that it is possible to not only see beauty around them again, but to see beauty in themselves, within their brokenness.

Note: Thank you to Tommy and Angie Sanders, for sponsoring today’s podcast episode in honor of their son, Nolan.

Links Mentioned in this episode:

Click here to sponsor a podcast episode in honor of your child.

Become a montly partner in supporting this podcast here.

COME JOIN US for our big GPS Hope 10-year-event (Weekend of Hope) in Wisconsin this August!!! Find out more  here.

Click here to find out more about GPS Hope Share & Care groups or becoming an affiliate group.

 

Birthdays:

Sean Kraus was born on February 19 and is forever 24.

Jason Zimdars was born on February 20 and is forever 35.

Nolan Sanders was born on February 24 and is forever 28.

Paul Huprich was born on February 24 and is forever 19.

 

If you would like your child mentioned on the podcast the week of his or her birthday, click here to fill out the short form with the needed information.

The special song written for our children’s birthdays I Remember Well can be heard here.

Remember to Hold On Pain Eases; there is HOPE!

www.gpshope.org

 

To have Laura come and minister at your event, contact us at office@gpshope.org.

Grieving Parents Sharing Hope (GPS Hope) is here to walk with parents through the darkness of child-loss, guiding them to a place of hope, light and purpose.

It is a safe place for anyone who has lost a child from this earth. There is no shame or judgment in where you are in this journey, including if you are struggling in your relationship with God or your faith has been completely shattered.

February 13, 2024 by Laura Diehl Leave a Comment

247: Expecting the Unexpected in Our Grief

When our child leaves this earth, there are plenty of unexpected things that happen as we go along on this unwanted journey. Sometimes it is based on things we expected that just don’t happen the way we thought they would, and other times these unexpected things seem to come out of nowhere.

In this episode, Laura wants to help pareavors be more prepared to expect the unexpected.

Links Mentioned in this episode:

Click here to sponsor a podcast episode in honor of your child.

Become a montly partner in supporting this podcast here.

Sign up to receive the Weekly Word of Hope here.

COME JOIN US for our big GPS Hope 10-year-event (Weekend of Hope) in Wisconsin this August!!! Find out more  here.

 

Birthdays:

Eric Decoteau was born on February 11 and is forever  28.

Jeffrey Allison was born on February 14 and is forever 30.

Hailey Eastridge was born on February 14 and is forever 9.

 

If you would like your child mentioned on the podcast the week of his or her birthday, click here to fill out the short form with the needed information.

The special song written for our children’s birthdays I Remember Well can be heard here.

Remember to Hold On Pain Eases; there is HOPE!

www.gpshope.org

 

To have Laura come and minister at your event, contact us at office@gpshope.org.

Grieving Parents Sharing Hope (GPS Hope) is here to walk with parents through the darkness of child-loss, guiding them to a place of hope, light and purpose.

It is a safe place for anyone who has lost a child from this earth. There is no shame or judgment in where you are in this journey, including if you are struggling in your relationship with God or your faith has been completely shattered.

February 6, 2024 by Laura Diehl Leave a Comment

246: My World Stopped When My Child Died

Many grieving parents who have faced child loss share how hard it is that everyone around them just keeps going on with their life as if nothing has happened, when their own life has come to a screeching halt after the death of their child.

Laura shares a specific time and place she had that exact painful thought and how she eventually saw that a change in perspective showed her how that could possibly be a good thing, as she continued on her unwanted journey of life here without her daughter.

In this episode, Laura also shares three suggestions on what to do when you feel like you just cannot go on without your child.

Links Mentioned in this episode:

Click here to sponsor a podcast episode in honor of your child.

Become a montly partner in supporting this podcast here.

COME JOIN US for our big GPS Hope 10-year-event (Weekend of Hope) in Wisconsin this August!!! Find out more  here.

 

Birthdays:

Robert Schafer DeVries was born on February 4 and is forever 35.

Ava Shaw was born on February 4 and is forever 20.

Bradley K Bongar was born on February 7 and is forever 37.

Brenton Smith was born on February 10 and is forever 24.

 

If you would like your child mentioned on the podcast the week of his or her birthday, click here to fill out the short form with the needed information.

The special song written for our children’s birthdays I Remember Well can be heard here.

Remember to Hold On Pain Eases; there is HOPE!

www.gpshope.org

 

To have Laura come and minister at your event, contact us at office@gpshope.org.

Grieving Parents Sharing Hope (GPS Hope) is here to walk with parents through the darkness of child-loss, guiding them to a place of hope, light and purpose.

It is a safe place for anyone who has lost a child from this earth. There is no shame or judgment in where you are in this journey, including if you are struggling in your relationship with God or your faith has been completely shattered.

February 5, 2024 by Laura Diehl Leave a Comment

Do You Need a Change Right Now? (By Lynn Frank)

As I sit in my comfy chair with a hot cup of coffee in hand, I am reminded that it’s the end of January.  The end of a cold, drab January in Ohio.  We haven’t seen the beautiful sunshine in nearly ten days.  The spitting rains, snowy commutes, foggy mornings, and the dreary atmosphere have really started to dampen my spirits.

Winter is hard, hard for everyone.  As a parent grieving the loss of her son, I find the winters to often be unbearable.  I yearn for warmth and sunshine and new beginnings.  I desperately want to run away from the cold of Ohio and find myself a reprieve in sunny Florida, but I am at a time in my life where that dream is not possible for me.  Work and the responsibilities of home trump my ability to dash away to warmer climates.  However, I crave change.  I crave change, not only from the environment, but I also crave major changes in my life.

The new year often promises rebirth and new beginnings.  New Year’s resolutions abound.  Losing weight, managing finances, being a better friend, etc.; we all crave new beginnings.  As I reflect upon this New Year and new beginnings, I come to realize that New Year’s resolutions are often destined to fail.  Research suggests that nearly 80-90% of new year’s resolutions fail by the beginning of February. (Online Resource: New Year’s Resolutions Statistics & Trends 2023, Lark Allen September 13, 2023.)

You may ask yourself, “I have the motivation, the plan, and the tools to make this year’s resolution different than previous years – so why do I continue to struggle?”  I would like you to consider a deeper dive into that question.

As a parent grieving the loss of a child, I find my ability and capacity for substantial change very difficult to obtain.  I find that sometimes I use my grieving as a crutch and an excuse as to why I’m struggling to make changes.  Yes, my grief can absolutely be the reason I struggle.  But is it the only reason I often fail in sustaining my new year’s resolutions?  That answer is no.

To make substantial change in my life, I need to influence the way my mind speaks to my heart.   I need my mind to preach to my heart and encourage it to surrender.

What does it mean to surrender? 

By Webster’s definition, one form of surrender means to stop fighting, hiding, and resisting because you know you won’t win or succeed.  This is not the type of surrender I am referring to.  Rather, by exploring the Biblical definition of surrender, a person gives up personal will and thoughts, ideas, and deeds to the will and teachings of a higher power (Wikipedia definition).

This type of surrender is to release control to obtain your highest potential.  To surrender your heart is to unleash the shackles that are binding up your ability to change.

Since the death of your beloved child, how have you shackled your heart to protect yourself from other’s hurtful words?  How have you created cement walls around your heart to protect it from further aches and pains?  How have you stopped loving those special people in your life because the thought of losing another loved one is unfathomable?

In a sheer effort to protect itself, your heart can become calloused to risk, to change and ultimately to personal growth.

The challenge

I challenge you to unleash the shackles by allowing the love of your Lord to be the foundation to your change.   Yoke yourself with the Lord.  When we are in union with Him, He helps us to carry the weight of our burdens.  Relinquish control, stress, and grief and surrender it to the Lord.

Here are a few steps that can assist you as you begin to chip away at the concrete walls you may have built around your heart.   Begin by taking your hand off the wheel and allowing God to take control.   The most effective way to give God the wheel of your life is through prayer; personal daily prayer with your Lord.  Allow His grace and mercy to speak to you.  Spend a few quiet moments throughout your day in deliberate heart driven prayer.   Ask for His guidance and direction.  Allow Him to take the wheel.

Next, take a moment every day to acknowledge what aspects of your life are thriving.  The darkness of grief can cause us to fail to see life’s beauty.   Change the lens through which you are viewing your life.   Deliberately find something that is beautiful and thriving every day.

One effective way to accomplish this is to keep a gratitude journal.   Small little snippets of your soul jotted down on paper intimately reminds us how we are thriving.   Daily gratitude can soften the grip of despair and enhance your ability to surrender your heart to the Lord.

Third, recognize that some obstacles and struggles you face could be detours propelling you in new and exciting directions.   Growth can’t happen unless we change the path and trajectory of our hearts and minds.   Lean into the fear.  Lean into the unknown.  Lean into the change.  With God as your yoke, you are capable of a new life afresh with the power and ability to create massive growth.

For many of us, our New Years resolution is already a distant afterthought and another perceived failure in our lives.  Don’t be forlorn.   There are no rules stating that change can only happen as a resolution on January 1st.

Pick a day (any day) and ask the Lord to yoke with you as you surrender control and unleash the shackles of your heart.   You are worthy of experiencing a successful New Years resolution, regardless of the day you choose to begin the journey of surrendering your heart to the Lord.   Open your heart and relish your newfound growth.

Are you looking for a connection that will give you hope? Let author, speaker, podcaster and founder of Grieving Parents Sharing Hope (GPS Hope), Laura Diehl, send you her Weekly Word of Hope, delivered each Wednesday. (Your email address is safe with GPS Hope.)

 

Expressions of Hope is provided by Grieving Parents Sharing Hope (GPS Hope). The founders, Dave and Laura Diehl, spent five years traveling full time in their Hope Mobile (a 38-foot motor home) to be more easily available for speaking and ministry requests, and bringing intimate weekend retreats to bereaved parents. Laura is also a singer/songwriter, podcaster and the author of multiple award-winning books.

If you would like more information about bringing Dave and Laura to you for an event, please send an email to office@gpshope.org.

If you are interested in bringing GPS Hope to your area for a weekend retreat click here.

 

  • Check out the Grieving Parents Sharing Hope weekly podcast
  • Subscribe to Laura’s YouTube channel. 
  • If you are a bereaved parent, we encourage you to connect with us on our private Facebook page or our public Facebook page. 
  • If you are not a bereaved parent but want to support those who are, or want to follow us as we give hope to these precious parents, please connect with us at Friends of GPS Hope on Facebook.

Filed Under: Expressions of Hope Tagged With: bereavement resources for parents, coping with the death of a child, finding hope after child loss, grief counseling for parents who lost a child, grieving parents support group, healing after the loss of a child, help for parents grieving child loss., parental grief support services, support for grieving parents after child loss

January 30, 2024 by Laura Diehl 2 Comments

245: A Needed Anchor for the Year

Every year, since 1998, Laura has asked the Lord for a scripture of what He wants to work into her life for that year. Several years ago, she also ask Him for a specific word, and many times that word and the scripture flowed together.

Laura has shared on this topic before, but felt led to talk about it again, because this past year’s verse for her has been so profound and  so very meaningful, and because of how intertwined her word and verse for 2024 are.

Her hope and prayer is that this episode helps each listener seek the Holy Spirit to do something similar, as a needed anchor they can continually turn to during the year.

Links Mentioned in this episode:

Click here to find out more about Laura’s book Reflections of Hope: A Daily Reading for Bereaved Parents.

Do you have Reflections of Hope? Write a review here on Amazon, to encourage other pareavors how it can help them on their own journey.

Share your verse or word with us here in the comment section.

COME JOIN US for our big GPS Hope 10-year-event (Weekend of Hope) in Wisconsin this August!!! Find out more  here.

 

Birthdays:

Robert Scott Lelle was born on January 28 and is forever 26.

Celeste France was born on January 29 and is forever 17.

Bryce Thurman was born on January 30 and is forever 22.

 

If you would like your child mentioned on the podcast the week of his or her birthday, click here to fill out the short form with the needed information.

The special song written for our children’s birthdays I Remember Well can be heard here.

Remember to Hold On Pain Eases; there is HOPE!

www.gpshope.org

 

To have Laura come and minister at your event, contact us at office@gpshope.org.

Grieving Parents Sharing Hope (GPS Hope) is here to walk with parents through the darkness of child-loss, guiding them to a place of hope, light and purpose.

It is a safe place for anyone who has lost a child from this earth. There is no shame or judgment in where you are in this journey, including if you are struggling in your relationship with God or your faith has been completely shattered.

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