The loss of a child is a devastating experience – but God is present even there. Listen as Susie is joined by Dr. Frank Page, who shares how God led him through the grief of his daughter’s death.
“I will admit that our daughters all have strong personalities – Melissa was very strong-willed. Even as young as two, she would steal a cookie and hide under the table… She was very smart and quickly learned she could do things easily, and would rather talk than study or take a test. We put her in Christian education but trouble came from even there.”
“The morning after Thanksgiving, she called me. She said, ‘Daddy, I love you.’ I said, ‘I love you baby.’ She said, ‘Please tell Mama and the girls that I love them.’ The red flags were flashing in my heart.” Frank urged her to tell them herself, but she hung up on him. Frank tried to reach her, but it was too late. After many struggles, his daughter had taken her life.
Frank shares what he’s experienced walking through grief, and points out that grief over a suicide is a unique version.
“It becomes what we know as a new normal. Every day I meet someone new and someone says, ‘Tell me about your family.’ That is always difficult, because the person who’s asking immediately becomes embarrassed. We live with it every single day. There’s an empty place at the table. Holidays are different. Everything changes. It is such a permanent solution to what is a temporary problem in someone’s life.”
Frank points out that once every fifteen minutes, someone in America takes their life. We can intercede for them through prayer and support. Melissa’s legacy can be one of joy and redemption.
“I don’t blame God. He is the giver of every good and perfect gift. He does intervene and I praise Him for that. But sometimes His intervention looks different than what we’d like.”
Melissa’s story is told in Frank’s book, .
Key Scriptures: 2 Corinthians 1:3-5; John 10:10
Theme Song: See You in a Little While by Steven Curtis Chapman
