Grief doesn’t just take what you love. It changes who you are.

In this episode of The NEXT Podcast, Jay Cookingham continues the conversation about grief as a rite of passage by stepping into what may be the hardest part of the journey—the middle space. That in-between place where you are no longer who you were, but not yet who you are becoming.

Jay shares honestly about disorientation, about learning to function in a life he didn’t choose after the loss of his bride, Christine, and about the quietness of God in seasons where clarity doesn’t come quickly. He speaks to the tension of wanting a map while discovering that what we truly need is proximity to the Father.

If you’ve felt lost, numb, behind, or unsure of who you are anymore, this episode offers language for that experience. The middle is not wasted space. It is sacred ground where identity is refined, dependence grows deeper, and God meets us daily with just enough grace.

You are not behind. You are in between. And God is still good there.

Find out more about me here: https://jaycookingham.com

I’m on @buymeacoffee. If you like, even maybe love my podcast, you can buy me a coffee and support me. It’s a simple way of showing your support and helping me grow the podcast. Thank you!

Here’s the link: buymeacoffee.com/jcdude56t

If grief is a rite of passage, then stripping is part of the journey.

In this episode of The NEXT Podcast, Jay Cookingham continues the conversation from Episode 53, exploring what grief takes from us—and why that painful undoing is not a sign of failure, but a necessary part of transformation.

Jay speaks candidly about the roles, rhythms, language, and assumptions that grief dismantles after the loss of his bride, Christine. He reflects on the feeling of being “undone,” not as something broken beyond repair, but as evidence that the work is not finished yet.

This episode invites listeners to slow down, resist the urge to rebuild too quickly, and allow God to meet them in the rubble. Grief strips away much, but it cannot strip away God’s presence, love, or redemptive work in our lives.

If you feel disoriented, unfinished, or unsure who you are anymore, this conversation offers permission to engage the process honestly—one step at a time, with God.

Grief is not a problem to fix, a disease to cure, or a sentence to serve. It is a passage to walk through.

In this episode of The NEXT Podcast, Jay Cookingham reflects on grief as a rite of passage—one that is entered, not chosen, and one that changes us whether we’re ready or not. Drawing from his own six-year journey after the loss of his bride, Christine, Jay shares how grief dismantles what was familiar and invites us into a deeper, more honest walk with God.

This conversation explores grief not as something to conquer, but as sacred ground where lament, worship, endurance, and intimacy with God are formed. Jay speaks candidly about what hasn’t worked, what still hurts, and how redemption doesn’t come through answers or explanations—but through the presence of God Himself.

If you feel stuck, behind, exhausted, or unsure why this journey is taking so long, this episode offers a reframing that may bring freedom: you are not failing—you are in passage.

Find out more about me here: https://jaycookingham.com
I’m on @buymeacoffee. If you like, even maybe love my podcast, you can buy me acoffee and support me. It’s a simple way of showing your support and helping megrow the podcast. Thank you!
Here’s the link: buymeacoffee.com/jcdude56t