A Loss That Changed Everything
When our child dies, life is forever divided into a “before” and an “after.” That kind of loss is something no parent ever expects or prepares for. In a recent conversation with Mick Weinhold, he shared the story of how the heartbreaking loss of his firstborn son, Luke, became the turning point that changed not just his life, but his eternity — a deeply personal Father’s Story of Losing a Child.
Mick described Luke’s birth and death as a moment that shattered his world. His wife had carried Luke to 39 weeks, only to discover that his heart had stopped beating just days before delivery. That devastating news left them with an empty crib, broken hearts, and a reality they never imagined they would face — the kind of pain only understood through a Father’s Story of Losing a Child.
Crying Out to God in the Darkness
But what makes Mick’s story so powerful is what happened after. He and his wife had grown up knowing about God, but had wanted nothing to do with Him. Rules and expectations without relationship had only pushed them further away. Yet in the raw pain of losing their first child, they found themselves crying out to God, not because they had it all figured out, but because they had nowhere else to turn. As Mick put it, “We felt like we had a Luke-shaped hole in our hearts. But what God showed us was that it was really a God-shaped hole.”
Out of that dark place, God met them with His love, His presence, and His peace. What started as desperate cries for help grew into a real relationship with Jesus. It didn’t erase the grief. It didn’t take away the longing for Luke. But it transformed their hearts and gave them a foundation that carried them through. Over time, they experienced not only healing but also blessings they could never have imagined, including the birth of three living children, two of them twins born seven years after Luke, a redemption that carried deep meaning.
Wrestling with Grief and Finding Purpose
Mick was honest about the struggle. There was anger, confusion, and the hard questions we all wrestle with after losing a child: “If God is good, why didn’t He stop this?” Yet even in his anger, God met him. Mick shared how he once cried out bitterly about the unfairness of friends having a baby being born on Luke’s due date, and in that moment, he heard God speak: “You were supposed to pray for them.” It was a reminder that even in grief, God is present, guiding, and working in ways beyond our understanding.
As we talked, Mick reflected on a pattern he has seen again and again: our plans interrupted by God, a painful in-between, and then blessings beyond what we could have imagined. These are not always the blessings the world points to, such as money, fame or success, but the kind of blessings that change lives and redeem what was broken.
Hope for the In-Between
For grieving parents, these blessings don’t make the loss go away. The hole our child leaves is real. But God can meet us in that place. He doesn’t replace our child, but He can bring us wholeness within the shatteredness. We can be complete in Him, even while still deeply missing our child.
Mick’s testimony reminds us that we always have a choice. We can push God away and remain in the suffocating darkness, or we can choose to cry out to Him. When we do, He meets us with hope, light, and peace, even in the middle of our pain.
If you are struggling today, hear this: the “in between” is not the end. If you can’t see anything good yet, that just means God is not finished. He still has blessings for you, more than you can imagine, and He wants to walk with you through the darkness until you see the light again — just as Mick did in his Father’s Story of Losing a Child.
Have you seen God at work in a way you did not expect, after the death of your child? Please share below, as an encouragement to others.
NOTE: This was partially taken from the Grieving Parents Sharing Hope podcast episode 316. Click here to listen to the full discussion, or look for the Grieving Parents Sharing Hope podcast on your favorite listening app.
📖 Find out more about Laura’s newly released book The Bible’s Grieving Parents: Finding Comfort, Hope and Faith from Their Stories.
If you’ve been struggling with questions like “Where is God in this pain?” or “How do I keep living with a broken heart?” I wrote this book for you. My prayer is that these biblical stories will remind you that you are not alone, and that God’s goodness and mercy are still at work in your life, just as He was in the lives of those we read about in the Bible. – Laura
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👉Click here for a PDF download from GPS Hope
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AWARD WINNING AUTHOR, LAURA DIEHL, has written several impactful books that provide comfort and guidance to those navigating the painful journey of child loss, after the death of her own daughter in 2011. Her most acclaimed work, When Tragedy Strikes: Rebuilding Your Life with Hope and Healing After the Death of Your Child, has received multiple accolades, including the 2017 Gold Medal Centauri Christian Book Award for Non-Fiction and a Silver Medal in the 2018 Illumination Awards. Several of her other books have won awards as well.
In addition to her writing, Laura is an ordained minister and has an extensive background in international children’s ministry. She is a sought-after speaker and singer at grief conferences and churches, known for her compassionate approach and deep understanding of the grieving process, especially the unique loss of a child. Through her weekly award-winning podcast, her writings, and other resources provided by GPS Hope, Laura and her husband, Dave, continue to provide hope and healing to thousands of parents worldwide, helping them find light in the midst of profound loss and darkness.
For more information about Laura’s award-winning books go to gpshope.org/books.
To find out more about Laura Diehl and the ministry of Grieving Parents Sharing Hope (GPS Hope) visit gpshope.org.
The link to Hope for the Future is an affiliate link, allowing part of the purchase price to go to GPS Hope.
If you have ever felt alone in the pain of losing your child, I want you to know that you are not walking this road by yourself. Together, as grieving parents, we walk through this valley with the God who promises to be our Shepherd. God Himself is with us, just as He was with the very first grieving parents in the Bible.
When Adam and Eve buried their son, Abel, after he was murdered by his own brother, I don’t think they even understood the full reality of death until they saw Abel’s lifeless body. They were the first to experience the heartbreak of child loss, and they weren’t the last. Scripture is filled with stories of parents who endured the death of a child, and their experiences hold encouragement for us today.
We can see in the stories of grieving parents in the Bible that God’s mercy and goodness carried them through, and He will do the same for us. His Spirit strengthens us to not only survive, but to one day share hope with others walking this same painful journey.
In 2018, Dave and I bought a motor home that we lovingly call the Hope Mobile. For five years we traveled full-time across the nation for GPS Hope, coming alongside grieving parents at retreats, support groups, and personal visits. Eventually, we needed to pause that season to be closer to our kids and grandkids here in Wisconsin, but the Hope Mobile still carries its own stories. Even as I write this, walnuts are falling on its roof, squirrels are playing tag in the trees above, and Savanah the cat is on full alert at the window.
For years, I’ve held onto my dad’s magic. But now I am forced to pray about what to do because of my son preparing to sell the house. How do you sell a bunch of magic tricks? Would anyone even buy them? I did some research, and sent out a few emails for some suggestions.
Here’s what I have been reminded of once again; letting go doesn’t mean forgetting. The love and the legacy remain, even when the “stuff” does not. And when the time is right, God will give us peace about what to keep, what to release, and how to carry the memories forward.
Introducing 
One of the hardest parts of grief after losing a child is what it does to our minds. The fog, the forgetfulness, the inability to concentrate; it can feel overwhelming and even frightening. One day I drove home from the grocery store without my groceries! I remember one time pulling over in the car because I could not remember why I was driving or where I was going, and checking to see if there was something on my phone calendar to tell me. (Thankfully, there was.)
If this is you right now, please hear me: you’re not crazy, and you’re not alone. This is part of the grieving process. And even though those first couple of years can feel brutal, it does get better. The breakdowns become less frequent, and the fog doesn’t last as long.
Here’s something important I had to learn: there is a difference between grief and self-pity. Grief is an appropriate response to the unthinkable loss of a child. But there comes a point where we can choose not to stay stuck in despair — and begin 
One of the truths that set me free was realizing I wasn’t moving further away from my daughter, Becca, as the years went by. Each day I live on this earth actually brings me closer to the day I will see her again. I am not getting further away from her; I am getting closer and closer to her. That perspective helped to shift me out of my self-pity, and still does.
I recently had the blessing of talking with a pareavor on the Grieving Parents Sharing Hope podcast, who is a strong encourager of prayer, even after the death of her daughter. I know praying can be extremely difficult for many of us now, wondering why we should bother praying, if God is just going to do what He wants to do anyway.
Rachel shared how those final days were filled with both deep anger and incredible intimacy with God. In her grief, she cried out, “God, you don’t know what it’s like to watch your child suffer and die.” Immediately, she felt His gentle reply: “Yes, I do. I watched my Son suffer and die for you.” That moment transformed John 3:16 from a familiar verse into a life-altering reality. God’s love was not distant. He was holding Taylor in heaven and Rachel on earth at the same time.
For most of us, it takes a while to realize that it is not the pain that keeps us attached to our children, but it is our love for them. This love not only remains, but for many of us, it continues to grow stronger and sharing that love with others becomes part of the healing journey.
Rachel’s encouragement is simple but life-giving: even if you don’t feel God, He is with you. Pain cannot grip you tighter than His grace. And joy and sorrow can co-exist in our lives when we let His Spirit breathe peace into our pain.
