John Dobbs (Forsythe Road Church of Christ, Monroe, Louisiana) suffered the sudden and tragic loss of his 18-year old son, John Robert, in 2008. After that terrible event, John had to learn to live with his grief--and go on being a follower of Jesus Christ and a minister to his church.

From his experience of living with grief, John wrote two books to help fellow Christians who are also suffering through the loss of people they love. In this episode, John talks about the extraordinary difficulty of grieving through the holidays. He reveals how he continues to process his grief, even almost 17 years after his son's death. And he explains how he now helps others who are living with their own painful grief. Finally, John offers some practical advice for how those who are grieving can get through the holiday season.

Link to Merry Christmas to a Broken Heart: A Devotional Companion for December by John Dobbs

Link to Through Your Tears: Sorrow From Loss, Hope for Healing by John Dobbs

Link to Lord, Hear My Prayer: Prayers and Prompts From the Psalms by John Dobbs

Link to The Christian Chronicle's review of Lord, Hear My Prayer

Link to John Dobbs's author page on Amazon

Link to The Compassionate Friends: Supporting Family After a Child Dies

Link to GriefShare grief and loss support groups (find one near you)

Find more news and stories at christianchronicle.org

Donate to support this ministry of "information and inspiration" at christianchronicle.org/donate

Send your comments, ideas, and suggestions to podcast@christianchronicle.org

Freed-Hardeman University graduate programs could change your life. And right now, there is no application fee nor entrance exams for listeners to this show. Learn more at fhu.edu/chronicle.

The Solomon Foundation (thesolomonfoundation.org)

Make The Christian Chronicle part of your legacy with PhilanthroCorp (christianchronicle.org/legacygiving)

OnlineSpanishChurch.com