Grief is often narrowly defined as how we feel when someone we love dies. But we do know there are many non-death losses that result in deep grief as well. One such loss is when someone I love decides to not love me any longer. The death of a relationship could be and often… Continue reading THE GPS RESPONSE WHEN THE LOVE OF MY LIFE LEAVES ME
What do we do with those shattered dreams when a marriage fails? Since 2009, our Spark of Life team has been honored to have hosted 115 Grief Retreats and almost 80 grief workshops for thousands of people who have been devastated by loss. We have discovered that non-death losses can also be devastating – losses… Continue reading Shattered Dreams
1) You Can Own, Take Charge, and Claim a Healthy Recovery The other 4, to be discussed in subsequent articles and videos, are: 2) RAW Honesty Helps 3) Gratitude, Daily Expressed, is Secret Sauce # 1 4) Purpose, Which is Focused on Others, is Secret Sauce # 2 5) There is Always Hope It was… Continue reading Five Things 1,700 Grievers Have Taught Us
# 1 – You Can Own, Take Charge, and Claim a Healthy Recovery # 2 – RAW Honesty is an Absolute Necessity The key word above is RAW — which is why it is in big letters — because it is a BIG, important word. RAW means it can hurt — being vulnerable and open… Continue reading Five Things 1,700 Grievers Have Taught Us | Part 2
Gratitude, Daily-Expressed, is Secret Sauce #1 One mystery in Grief and Recovery is this: Why do some ‘Live Forward’ with hope after devastating losses, while others with similar losses really never get out of that pit of grief? One lives forward with their pain of loss – another simply exists forward. There are no short… Continue reading Five Things 1,700 Grievers Have Taught Us | Part 3
‘Finding Meaning’ is Secret Sauce #2 “It’s never too late to have a happy childhood.” The quote above is one of ‘those’ quotes. My good friend Joe Beam, founder of Marriage Helper, said it at one of the marriage workshops we were doing together a few years ago. It still resonates with me, challenges me,… Continue reading Five Things 1,700 Grievers Have Taught Us | Part 4
A few weeks ago Spark of Life had a booth at the American Association of Christian Counselors conference in Dallas. We talked to hundreds of people about the mission of helping people find hope after loss. The highlight of the conference was seeing a former participant named Krista who had a booth right across from… Continue reading An Amazing Three Days | 2022 AACC Highlights
There is Always Hope They had nothing about them that would indicate greatness. Two photographers, each with a camera around their necks. But greatness they had, and hope they gave. And they had no idea. Their mission: when babies were not expected to leave the hospital alive, they took pictures of the babies and their… Continue reading Five Things 1,700 Grievers Have Taught Us | Part 5
It is December 13th as I write this. Our daughter-in-law Shelly has had their Christmas tree up since the end of October. She just loves Christmas or at least loves trees in her living room. And though many of us love this time of year, many we know simply dread it. As families gather to… Continue reading Christmas, Grief, and HOPE
I was in an elevator in Flint, Michigan in February about 30 years ago. I know, you feel sorry for me don’t you? The last place on earth one should be is in an elevator in Flint, Michigan, in February. But there I was, and when the door opened a much older lady (at least… Continue reading THE ELEVATOR, FLINT MI, THE YELLOW SWEATER, AND ENCOURAGEMENT!
Spark of Life exists to instill hope that, though life can never be the same after loss, it can be rich and fulfilling. We are here to walk beside you on that journey, and hope begins now. We are a non-profit organization.
