Twelve inspirational messages to give you hope during your time of loss. From the Introduction... Let me start off by saying, "I'm sorry." If you're about to read this book, chances are good that you've probably lost someone or some thing that was very precious to you. And for that, perhaps the best thing I can say to you right now is simply, "I'm sorry." I wish there were something more I could do for you, or say to you, that would help to take away your pain or to ease your burden, even just a little. Although it may not seem like much, perhaps saying, "I'm sorry," is just enough for right now. Sometimes it's just enough to know that there are other people who care, that there are other people who are aware of your pain and that there are other people who have walked through the darkness as well. I wish I could say I know what you're going through, but I don't. And even though no two losses are the same, sometimes it's nice just to know that other people have walked through the darkness and found something special along the way, something they may have never noticed when they were walking in the light. Stars, for instance, shine brighter when there are no other lights around. I'm not saying it's easy, or altogether wonderful to walk in the darkness. It's not. But if you read through the words on the following pages, you'll find that there are beautiful lights along the way, glimpses of heaven and riches that glisten that you may never have noticed had you not walked this way. Samuel Rutherford, a Scottish pastor in the 1600s, said: "Jesus came into my prison cell last night, and every stone flashed like a ruby." On the pages that follow, I'd like to share with you some of the rubies I saw as I walked through my own period of darkness-my first year of grief after losing my precious wife, Lana. I wrote these 12 messages while I was walking through the darkness, not after the fear and danger were gone, which always seems to make things look brighter and more obvious than before. I wrote them in the midst of the pain and heartache that I was experiencing, both as a way to help me stay focused on the One who was walking through it with me, and as a way to give hope to others who were walking through their own times of darkness. At the beginning of my journey, I read a book called Getting to the Other Side of Grief. As I was just getting started, I honestly didn't know that there was another side of grief and, if there was, if I'd ever get there myself. The pain was just too intense. But the authors of the book made a compelling case for the fact that there is another side of grief, and gave me hope that I could get there, too. I took their words to heart and I began to walk with intentionality, trusting that their words were true. More than that, I had the promise of God's Word in the Bible that says that He will work all things together for our good: "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose" (Romans 8:28). There's no hurry or timetable with grief. But I can say there is another side of it. As I mention in the final chapter of this book, I'm thankful now to be able to see it for myself. There is another side of grief. As Jesus said to His disciples just before He died: "You will grieve, but your grief will turn to joy" (John 16:20b). That may have sounded like an outlandish promise to the disciples at the time, except for the fact that it was Jesus who was saying it-the same Jesus whom they had seen heal the sick, walk on water and raise the dead. If anyone could make a promise like that and live up to it, Jesus could. So with that hope in mind, and with my heartfelt condolences for the loss that you've experienced, I invite you to read the 12 messages that follow. I pray that they give you hope for your future-and that they help you to see any stones along the way flash like rubies. In Christ's lov