The first time Denise Briley took her two youngest children to one of the churches in their new town, they were greeted warmly. When the family arrived the next week, this time with eleven-year-old Clayton in his wheelchair, no one even made eye contact with them. Fortunately, the family found another church where all of them felt welcome. Although the church community didn’t have experience working with people with disabilities, volunteers came forth to support the Brileys and help Clayton attend Sunday school and church.

Born with severe cerebral palsy, Clayton inspired a special-needs ministry that grew to 80–100 participants, including volunteers. Children and their families who had never been able to attend church before found a welcoming community where they no longer felt isolated.

This is the story of Denise and her beloved son Clayton, who passed away in 2009 at the age of twenty-five. It is the story of a mother’s devotion and of her journey to places she never expected to be, doing God’s work in a way she never could have foreseen. Honest and courageous, Denise shares not only her love and grief, but her struggle to find direction after Clayton’s death. But whenever she needed a sign of God’s presence, he sent her a feather. Feathers from Heaven challenges us to think about how we include people with disabilities in our churches, and to look for signs of God’s grace in our own lives.

When author Phoebe Leggett received a tragic call in the middle of the night nearly eight years ago, her life was forever changed. Her twenty-two-year-old son had just been killed in a car crash. Devastated and confused, she embarked on a long and difficult journey to recovery.

In It’s My Time to Grieve,she presents a message of hope for hurting hearts. Using personal experiences as a guide, she shares her story while providing a resource to help others successfully navigate through the grieving process, which includes moving through the stages of grief; managing the holidays; handling the emotions of fear, anger, and regret; dealing with the death of a child, spouse, parent, sibling, friend, or pet; sharing the pain; gaining comfort and healing from the Bible; moving forward.

Applying Bible verses, poetry, and personal stories, It’s My Time to Grieve communicates a message of hope for the brokenhearted with the comfort God provides. His consolation is all that’s needed to see you through the process of sorrow. Set it free, give it to God, and let it go.

When author Phoebe Leggett received a tragic call in the middle of the night nearly eight years ago, her life was forever changed. Her twenty-two-year-old son had just been killed in a car crash. Devastated and confused, she embarked on a long and difficult journey to recovery.

In It’s My Time to Grieve,she presents a message of hope for hurting hearts. Using personal experiences as a guide, she shares her story while providing a resource to help others successfully navigate through the grieving process, which includes moving through the stages of grief; managing the holidays; handling the emotions of fear, anger, and regret; dealing with the death of a child, spouse, parent, sibling, friend, or pet; sharing the pain; gaining comfort and healing from the Bible; moving forward.

Applying Bible verses, poetry, and personal stories, It’s My Time to Grieve communicates a message of hope for the brokenhearted with the comfort God provides. His consolation is all that’s needed to see you through the process of sorrow. Set it free, give it to God, and let it go.

In February 2008, Alicia Crawley got the phone call every parent dreads: two of her children had been in a car accident. Her son, Jonathan, was fine, but by the time Alicia arrived at the scene minutes later, her sixteen-year-old daughter, Lauren, had died. In the days that followed, Alicia, who until then had had a vibrant relationship with Jesus Christ, was plunged into the dark pit of grief, unable even to feel God’s presence. His seeming silence left her spiritually paralyzed.

Alicia barely recognized herself or her life, but she kept going to God’s word, seeking comfort, understanding, and purpose. She came to realize that He had never left her but that she hadn’t been able to hear Him over the roar of her pain. Deeply thoughtful, honest, and unafraid to ask difficult questions, Alicia shares here what she learned about suffering, about heaven, and about listening to and trusting God.

Although support groups, individual therapy, and medication can all help at a time of profound loss, Wonderful Counselor assures us that the Holy Spirit is the ultimate source of wisdom and healing. For Alicia, turning to God provided more than comfort; it oriented her family toward the future and toward opportunities to reach the lost and broken around them in ways and in places they never could have imagined. Surrendering their beloved Lauren took on meaning they never thought possible. Guided by the Spirit, they have allowed her legacy to become one of hope and joy.