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GPS Hope

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May 27, 2022 by Laura Diehl Leave a Comment

From Bereaved Parents: We Will Remember

 

We see a flag at half mast, and we remember.

We hear TAPS being played, and we remember.

We donate to a war veteran with red poppies, and we remember.

We observe red, white and blue flags lining the street poles and filling sections of a cemetery, and we remember.

We not only remember, but we honor those who were willing to give their lives in service to our country.

We not only remember and honor them, but we remember the families who have carried that sacrifice and had to live with their child, their father, mother, uncle, cousin, best friend gone from their lives.

We not only remember, but we cry with them, especially those of us who have buried a child, because we know the suffocating darkness of love being torn from us.

So, we not only remember, we grieve with you.

We will not let you be alone in remembering those who died for us on this Memorial Day.

 

Losing a child can make us feel very alone. People around us just don’t understand why we are taking so long to “get over it.”

Here at Grieving Parents Sharing Hope (GPS Hope) we understand, because we have been there, and would like to connect with you to walk this unwanted journey together. If you would like to receive a list of Thirty Ways to Help Take Care of and Bring Yourself Comfort, please submit your name and email address below.

It will also put you on our email list to receive a couple of introductory emails to the resources GPS Hope has available, and a Weekly Word of Hope. You can easily unsubscribe when you no longer want to receive them.

 

Expressions of Hope is provided by Grieving Parents Sharing Hope (GPS Hope). The founders, Dave and Laura Diehl, travel 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 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: bereaved parent Memorial Day, child loss and patriotic holidays, comfort for grieving families, GPS Hope Laura Diehl, GPS Hope Memorial Day reflection, grief support Memorial Day, honoring fallen soldiers and families, Memorial Day grief after child loss, military child loss support, remembering on Memorial Day

May 24, 2022 by Laura Diehl Leave a Comment

160: Gold Star Moms (with Bev Shoemaker, Lorie Southerland and Amy Drake)

Here in the United States, the last Monday in May is Memorial Day, which is a day to honor those who have given their lives for our country. In this episode, Laura focuses on pareavors who have lost their children because of being in the military. Their child chose to go into the armed forces, knowing their life might be sacrificed, which can have so many mixed emotions for their families because it became a very heavy and personal sacrifice for themselves.

Three guests join Laura today. Bev Shoemaker is a previous guest whose oldest son has had several military tours as special forces, but it was her younger son who died in an accident killed by a drunk driver. Three years later her husband died by suicide. Through dealing with these two painful losses, God directed her on a path that has resulted in ministering to Gold Star Moms.

The other two guests are Gold Star Moms, which are mothers whose children served in the military and lost their lives as a result of their service. Lori Southerland’s son, Michael, was killed while serving in Iraq. Amy Drake lost her son, Benjamin, from PTSD after serving during wartime in the Middle East.

As pareavors, we all know the pain and solemness of losing a child. Let’s be sure to take some time on Memorial Day to remember and honor those who gave their lives willingly for our freedoms, and also send up a prayer for these families who personally bear the pain of that sacrifice.

Having faced serious trauma in her own life, Beverly is no stranger to adversity. After losing a husband to suicide and her son in a drunk driving crash, she wanted to give up. She battled depression and discouragement, loneliness and pain, yet she persevered and ultimately found hope. Now Beverly seeks to share that hope with others. She speaks to churches, schools, businesses, and military events, showing strength and courage in a way that offers hope to those listening. She makes it her mission to help others rediscover their identity and purpose after loss and trauma.

 

Lorie Southerland, a native Texan, served in the Airforce as an Aircrew Life Support Equipment Specialist.  She is the wife of a military husband, the mother of Spc Michael Rodriguez, as well as three other children, and is the grandmother of four beautiful grandchildren. Lorie started both the Dogwood Chapter of the American Gold Star Mothers in Sanford, North Carolina, and Wreaths Across America at Sandhills State Veterans Cemetery in Spring Lake. She was also instrumental in naming part of NC Hwy 24 “Gold Star Memorial Highway”. Lorie has also volunteered with and managed the Fort Bragg Fisher House and has worked closely with the Warrior Transition Battalion for wounded soldiers at Fort Bragg. She spends her time helping local veteran groups and is very active in her church.

 

Amy Drake is a mom of ten and grandma to twenty-one grandchildren so far. She was a stay-at-home while mom raising her family. Church was first in the lives of her children and teaching them about the Lord Jesus Christ was most important. After the death of her son, due to military PTSD, Amy started making and selling aprons to raise awareness of PTSD (which can be found on Facebook as Aprons for PTSD Awareness) and to get resources for military veterans. When her husband retires later this year, they plan to travel around the country to visit their children and grandchildren who are scattered around the US.

 

(Note: The views and opinions of our guests outside of this podcast may not be in agreement with GPS Hope.)

 

Links Mentioned in this episode:

Listen to previous episodes with Bev: Passing It On  and Finding Meaning and Purpose Again

Connect with Bev on her website: theresilientheartpodcast.com or beverlyshoemaker.com

Email Lori at lsoutherland82@gmail.com

Find Amy and her Aprons for PTSD Awareness here.

Join over 1,000 other pareavors who recieve a Weekly Word of Hope from Laura.

Birthdays:

Isaiah Santell was born on May 22 and is forever 16.

Kyle Terry was born on May 24 and is forever 28.

Andrew LaPlante was born on May 27 and is forever 24.

 

Fill out the short form with the needed information to have your child’s birthday shared with our listeners.

The special song “I Remember Well“, which was written by Laura for our children’s birthdays, can be heard on your favorite music app. To hear samples of Laura’s other songs, click here.

 

Remember to Hold On Pain Eases; there is HOPE!

www.gpshope.org

 

Would you like to have Laura come and speak to your group? 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.

 

May 17, 2022 by Laura Diehl Leave a Comment

159: My Spouse Tried to Numb The Pain of Child Loss in Harmful Ways (with Jeff Snider and Curtis Stovall)

Those of us who have lost a child have been through a trauma. We are dealing with traumatic grief. Many parents also have PTSD. How do we get through the suffocating darkness and things like night terrors? Some go to their physician who will write them prescriptions for anxiety or to help them sleep.

It is very easy to get hooked on these prescriptions, needing higher and higher doses to work. Quite often, alcohol gets added to the mix of trying to numb the pain.

What happens when your spouse turns to these things? Today’s episode is talking to two dads who both lost their sons, and whose wives turned to these harmful ways of coping with the pain of child loss for several years. (You can hear both of these moms/wives share their stories in episode 154.)

Being a believer in Christ does not automatically keep you from experiencing heartache and tragedy in this world. It also does not mean you will run to Him immediately for comfort, especially when we know He could have prevented the tragedy. Things like prescription drug abuse and alcohol abuse are more common among Christians after child loss than we might think and is important to talk about.

There is no judgment in this, only care, compassion and extending hope for a way out, along with encouragement for those who have a spouse who is making harmful choices in their deep grief.

Jeff Snider is the father of three adult children, Brenton forever 24, Charlie and Cheyenne. He also has two grandsons and twin granddaughters born at only 28 weeks in April. Jeff and his wife, Stacie, recently moved to their dream home in north-central Texas with lots of acreage and a barn for animals. He retired from the trucking industry at the beginning of this year to take care of their little farm and spend time with his family. 

 

Curtis Stovall lives in Greer, South Carolina, is the father to seven children and a Papa to one. Two red-headed young ones still live at home, keeping he and his wife, Courtney, very busy.  Curtis works as a receiving associate at Mitsubishi Chemical. Along with juggling work and home, Curtis is also pursuing his Biblical Studies degree, which he will receive from Liberty University in 2 more semesters. As a pareavor who is four years into this journey, Curtis enjoys nothing more than spending every available moment with his family.

 (Note: The views and opinions of our guests outside of this podcast may not be in agreement with GPS Hope.)

 

Links Mentioned in this episode:

Email Jeff: jssnider@rocketmail.com

Email Curtis:curtisjstovall@gmail.com

Join over 1,000 parents receiving a Weekly Word of Hope here.

 

Birthdays:

Colby Brown was born on May 17 and is forever 19.

Jordan Slusher was born on May 17 and is forever 21.

Christopher Rueben was born on May 19 and is forever 16.

Ryan Drew was born on May 19 and is forever 31.

 

Fill out the short form to have your child’s birthday shared with our listeners.

The special song “I Remember Well“, which was written by Laura for our children’s birthdays, can be heard on your favorite music app. To hear samples of Laura’s other songs, click here.

 

Remember to Hold On Pain Eases; there is HOPE!

www.gpshope.org

 

Would you like to have Laura come and speak to your group? 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.

 

May 10, 2022 by Laura Diehl Leave a Comment

158: The Hope of Glory

Attaining the Triple Crown is a rare accomplishment, whether in horse racing or in baseball.  Unfortunately, it is also a rare accomplishment in our life as a Christian and can be especially difficult after the death of our child.

What is the Triple Crown for a follower of Christ?

Laura believes it is learning:

1) how to clarify God’s vision for our lives, including being released from our paralyzing grief that keeps us from going forward.

2) how to live from a place of being in Christ.

3) how to live from a deeper revelation of the identity of the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit.

Join Laura for this interesting discussion, which is a continuation of last week’s episode, along with some thoughts about this past week’s highly unusual Kentucky Derby horse race, which is the first of the three races for the Triple Crown.

See the crown… Wear the crown… Be the crown…

Links Mentioned in this episode:

Take a look at the various Hold On Pain Eases shirts.

Episode 157: Our Crown as a Believer

Birthdays:

Michael Slater was born on May 8 and is forever 26.

Ashley Pekarek was born on May 10 and is forever 24.

Sarah Wilber was born on May 10 and is forever 34.

Sydney Seisay was born sleeping on May 11.

Jack Randall Whitaker was born on May 12 and is forever 37.

Adan Razo was born on May 13 and is forever 18.

 

Fill out the short form with the needed information to have your child’s birthday shared with our listeners.

The special song “I Remember Well“, which was written by Laura for our children’s birthdays, can be heard on your favorite music app. To hear samples of Laura’s other songs, click here.

 

Remember to Hold On Pain Eases; there is HOPE!

www.gpshope.org

 

Would you like to have Laura come and speak to your group? 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.

May 3, 2022 by Laura Diehl Leave a Comment

157: Our Crown as a Pareavor

Attaining the Triple Crown is a rare accomplishment, whether in horse racing or in baseball.  Unfortunately, it is also a rare accomplishment in our life as a Christian and can be especially difficult after the death of our child.

What is the Triple Crown for a follower of Christ?

Laura believes it is learning:

  • how to clarify God’s vision for our lives, including being released from our paralyzing grief that keeps us from going forward.
  • how to live from a place of being “in Christ”.
  • how to live from a deeper revelation of “Christ in me” through the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit.

See the crown.. Wear the crown… Be the crown…

Join Laura for the beginnig of this interesting discussion which continues next week.

Links Mentioned in this episode:

Take a look at the various Hold On Pain Eases shirts.

 

Birthdays:

Nikolas Barrett Graves was born on May 3 and is forever 23.

Shannon Olsen was born on May 3 and is forever 19.

Alexandre Simoes was born on May 3 and is forever 9 months.

Rosalie Marstall was born on May 4 and is forever 4.

Herman Joubert was born on May 5 and is forever 21.

Adam Walker was born on May 6 and is forever 28.

John Patrick Keck was born on May 7 and is forever 23.

 

Fill out the short form with the needed information to have your child’s birthday shared with our listeners.

The special song “I Remember Well“, which was written by Laura for our children’s birthdays, can be heard on your favorite music app. To hear samples of Laura’s other songs, click here.

 

Remember to Hold On Pain Eases; there is HOPE!

www.gpshope.org

 

Would you like to have Laura come and speak to your group? 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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Recent Posts

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  • Is God Punishing Me for My Past? A Word for Grieving Parents Struggling with Guilt
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  • Can I Trust God Leading Me?



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