Grief doesn’t always look like losing someone. Sometimes, it’s the ache of a dream that never came to life, a future that didn’t unfold as you’d hoped, or a relationship that was taken away.

In this episode of the Eternal Echoes podcast, host Katharine Rose speaks with Jan Johnson, a 72-year-old woman who has endured many adversities – from miscarriage and widowhood to estranged children, abandonment, rape and cancer. More recently, she has experienced the loss of a relationship with a grandchild who was kidnapped by her own father.

Jan shares how she’s learned to trust God through it all by grounding herself in His word, reflecting on His past faithfulness, and maintaining an eternal perspective. She offers words of encouragement to grieving hearts, reminding listeners that God uses tribulations to build our testimony of faith and draw us closer to Himself.

Wise words worth echoing:

-“We go through the trials and tribulations because that’s where we come closest to Him. He’s building my testimony to share with somebody else that might be going through it.”

-“I have learned to trust Him, which is just a hard thing to do. But you only learn that through going through hard things. If you don't go through hard things, you don't need to trust Him.”

-“If He doesn't answer in the here and now, He still has a big picture of how it's going to work, whether we understand it or not. And that’s where your trust comes in.”

-“We need to go back and write down those things and say, this is where God came through in my life. This is where He hasn't come through yet – but He will.”

-“God takes you through deep waters. He's right there and you just have to keep in the Word because if you don’t, you just get lost.”

Connect with Jan:

Website: https://jan-johnson.com/

Just Talkin About Jesus Podcast: https://justtalkinaboutjesus.buzzsprout.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/justtalkinaboutjesus

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jan.johnson.5201

Substack: https://janjohnsonauthor.substack.com/?utm_source=global-search

Follow Katharine and Eternal Echoes:

Facebook and Instagram: @EternalEchoesMinistry

Substack: http://katharinerrose.substack.com

Website: www.eternalechoesministry.com

Email: ⁠⁠Katharine@eternalechoesministry.com⁠⁠ for speaking events or interviews

Watch this episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e2A4VkhcFV4