Synopsis
Recovering from losing a loved one is a slow process and the importance of allowing oneself to grieve and of getting support and help from others is treated at length with suggestions on methods of helping to cope with the pain and loss and to find comfort in others and God and His promises. The need to eventually allow oneself to heal and find hope and even joy again is seen as a realistic possibility by the grace of God. A chapter is devoted to the loss of a child as it is a uniquely painful experience. There is a discussion how working with families who have lost children is the single most difficult thing to watch a family go through and seems to be the most difficult thing for a family to endure, which is why there is a full chapter focusing on the impact and unique circumstances surrounding this tremendous loss. It does not make any difference how brave or strong we may be, or think we can be, we must call grief and sorrow by their right names in order to comprehend what is happening and again remember that God tells us that “there is a time to mourn.” We should not, by any reflection or semantics, minimize what we are going through when death removes a loved one. The fact remains: someone we loved is deceased. That someone is gone from our lives. We are human, and miss deeply that person. This is one of the reasons why death is called “an enemy” by God. Losing a loved one reminds us of how fragile we all are. In the end life isn’t about money, success, power, happiness, etc.; it is about relationships—relationships, with fellow human beings and a relationship with God. This book is intended to contribute comfort, peace, hope and healing in some measure to all who open its pages.
About the Author
A few years ago a fourteen year old boy was killed when his tractor that he was driving was hit by another car and fell on top of him. One of our elders asked me, "Do you have something for me to read that might be helpful and that I can give to my sister who just lost her fourteen year old son?" I had a difficult time to come up with something I thought might be helpful other than the Bible. It was then I realized that not much has been written on the subject in recent years from a thoroughly biblical perspective. Therefore I set out to write a twenty page pamphlet but ended up with a book. One of my daughters, who has two masters degrees from Columbia University in psychology and who has had experience with taking care of a child who died from brain cancer, took a very active interest in the book. I consider her involvement indispensable as she brought a woman's sensitive perspective on the subject. Some who have read the book have commented on how they appreciate the wisdom and sensitivity expressed throughout. As a pastor of forty years I have had to deal with the death of loved ones on a regular basis. Often I am asked, "What can I read on that would be helpful in dealing with such loss?" I believe this book meets the need of those with such a burning question. Lars Wilhelmsson writes with 40 years of pastoral experience and has worked with and counseled many singles and couples who have suffered the loss of a loved one. He has pastored churches in California, Minnesota and Connecticut and has authored seven books and numerous articles for Christian periodicals. He is part time professor at Alliance Theological Seminary, Nyack, N.Y. and he has taught as adjunct professor in various institutions of higher learning including Fuller Theological Seminary, Pasadena, CA, where he received a master's degree and doctorate in historical and practical theology. He has been a regular lecturer and preacher in Lima, Peru, for the past 20 years and has been involved in humanitarian relief work in Cuba for several years. Lars and his wife Nancy have five children and four grandchildren.
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