What a hard questions to have to ask. And what a hard question to try to answer. No doubt, some of you have had to ask such a question, and I can’t imagine the grief and sadness you have had to bear.
An Email from Miranda Gardner
A couple weeks ago, my editor at Discovery House Publishers emailed. “I read this article and thought of you and your new book,” Miranda said. (Miranda’s been thinking a lot about Different Dream Parenting: A Practical Guide to Raising a Child with Special Needs, since she’s the one shining it up before its release in October.) I clicked on the link that took me to Two Minutes to Eternity, an article at the Christianity Today website.
Two Minutes to Eternity
The article was written by Marshall Shelley. He’s the editor of Leadership Journal which is published by Christianity Today. Shelley wrote the article in 1994 after he lost two children. Son Toby died from complications of Trisomy 13 after two minutes on earth. Daughter Mandy had severe developmental delays and died just before she turned two. And yet in the midst of his grief and pain, Shelley found comfort in the promises of God. Because his thoughts were so profound, filled with truth and hope, the article was recently republished at www.ChristianityToday.com.
Thank You, Marshall Shelley
Thank you, Marshall Shelly, for sharing your journey. Thank you for this wonderful resource to pass on to grieving parents who need hope. May we respond to others with equal sensitivity and compassion when families we love lose children they love.
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jolene it sure does!
this is the way i got thru jocy’s illness. i had to look to eternity and not dwell on the here and now. we experienced God in a mighty way when jocy was sick and know his hand was on her.
to have those kinds of miracles happen in a family, and to bring home a now chronically ill kid, we fully expected Grace to come home and we would be family and supportive in a way we didn’t have when we came home…
God does have a plan, i know. his ways are always better then mine.
yes i would definately be interested in your book! can you email me the details?
God bless!
Hi Lynette,
So sorry to hear about your great niece. How difficult for her parents. I see my book is out of stock at Amazon, but I have lots of copies if you want one to give them. Let me know.
The article in this post puts life and death, even of children, in an eternal perspective doesn’t it?
Jolene
jolene and marshall,
thanks so much for sharing. on monday my great niece passed away suddenly after 4 monthes of birth. she was born with a hole in her diaphram and this caused many many complications. she had been doing very well up to 10 days or so before her passing and we were very anxious to bring her home. the services will be tuesday, and after the miracle of my daughter surviving AML cancer, lung hemorrage, kidney failure and stroke, i truly believed that God was going to save sweet baby grace. your article touched me profoundly as i have been a bit pissed off that my prayers weren’t answered the way i wanted! i am crying now, with a heart that knows that God’s plan is always better then mine, even when i don’t understand.