Hope in the Face of Grief and Loss (feat. Kendra Tierney)

Grief and loss are a part of nearly everyone's life. We may experience deep suffering, like wanting to be married but not finding a spouse. Or losing a spouse to an early death. Maybe you've experienced the loss of a child, a miscarriage, or the struggle with infertility.
It can feel frustrating when others respond, "Well, God has a plan." Indeed, he does have a plan, but where does this suffering fit into that plan?
Today, Kendra Tierney, a mother of 10 and a recent widow, shares her own honest experience of navigating loss and grieving the life that she now doesn't have after the loss of her husband.
Kendra is a "mother of many" living outside Los Angeles, CA. She started Catholic All Year to share the practice of celebrating the liturgical year in the home and getting to know the saints and seasons of the Church calendar through food, prayer, and conversation.
If you’d like her guide to liturgical living, it’s available in book form in The Catholic All Year Compendium: Liturgical Living for Real Life and The Catholic All Year Prayer Companion: The Liturgical Year in Practice, both of which you can find at www.CatholicAl...
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[@nallelyelizabeth5157]

My 16 year old son passed away May 7, 2022. Two weeks later ( May 22, 2022), my 14 year old son was in a tragic car accident that left 4 dead. He survived but suffered major life altering injuries. Since then, I have dedicated all of my free time to the Lord, but every single day is a struggle. I'm trying so hard to praise God and give him all of my moments, but I feel so abandoned by Him at times and it makes me fall into despair. I would appreciate your prayers. Jesus, I Trust In You.

[@humbledaughter2219]

My goodness I’m so sorry. Just your comment alone is filled with so much strength and faith. I will be thinking of you and keeping your family in prayer. God bless you.

[@vmwid]

My heart breaks for both of us. My 16 year old son passed away in Jan 2024 when he took his own life. I have struggled to carry on and i don't actually want to carry on. 2 weeks ago, my husband went missing during hiking ( praise God that my husband was found the next day, he is ok). I thought the worst and i went on bargaining mode to God, i cant carry on if i dont have my husband, please return him to me and i promise i will carry on even though it's hard. Life is so hard most times. But what can we do but carry on. But God will always love us and show us mercy for now and the next life. I will remember you in my prayers.

[@nallelyelizabeth5157]

@@humbledaughter2219 thank you for your prayers. May God Bless you and Our Blessed Mother wrap you in her mantle. May Christ's peace be with you. ❤️🙏

[@nallelyelizabeth5157]

@@vmwid Please know I'm truly sorry and also please know I know exactly how you feel. Please know you are not alone in your suffering. Let us unite our suffering to Christ on the Cross. I will pray for you as well and for your family. One moment at a time, that's what I tell myself. This agonizing pain makes it hard to breathe, but let us keep giving each second to Our Lord and seek Him in all moments. Specially when it's hard to take the next breath. I carry my Rosary in my pocket and a wooden Crucifix in the other. I find myself reaching for it a lot and just telling God, "I'm not letting go of You. Don't let go of me." Christ Peace be with you 🫂🙏❤️

[@bobtaylor170]

​@@nallelyelizabeth5157He won't let go of you. Sixty five years ago, when I was seven, I was almost killed in a mass murder, and have had severe disabilities ever since. The Lord hasn't let me go. He won't let you go.

[@Dianadicarta]

my biggest dream, since I was a child, is to have a family of my own. I’m almost 31 and are still single. Every year it gets harder and it is weird because there’s deep hurt and deep grief but about something that I have never had and maybe never will, but the only comfort I get is from God and from my family. I can’t imagine going through any kind of spiritual pain without believing in God and without believing in a God who loves us so much that He gave His life for us

[@thatsfunny2051]

I'm nearly 34, and I've always wanted to be married and to have children. It hasn't happened. From age 30 up until a few months ago, I gave up on that hope entirely. Then I met my boyfriend, a wonderful man who wants to marry me. Singleness is so, so hard, especially in some church communities. It can be a very isolating experience. I just want to say that I know exactly what you're experiencing.

[@Dianadicarta]

@@thatsfunny2051 thank you so much for your comment :) God bless you

[@buttercupslightningbugs8089]

I’ve been there, don’t give up hope and prayer. Find joy now though. Devote this time you have now to doing things you can such as learning, creating, honing in on skills to be a good wife and mother and homemaker as well. I met my husband in my late thirties and just had our second child this year. Both pregnancies completely natural (I’m 47). We do have our challenges but there will always be challenges in life. 🩵🙏🏻

[@elizanagrey9576]

Please do not worry, or despair. Reflect on Mathhew 6:24-36

[@Dianadicarta]

Thank you so much to the three of you, it’s reassuring to find sisters in Christ like you. God Bless You

[@madams.5976]

Please pray for my husband John who has been in hospital since April 21. He’s going in for a Pet-CT scan and I’m praying for a miracle that he’s ok, Lord please hear my prayer and 🙏 for all those with special intentions.

[@AscensionPresents]

We will be praying for your husband! Thank you for sharing. 🙏

[@mkf628]

St. Charbel please help this family, Amen.

[@simoneleighton9845]

This has come at an interesting time. I am in constant battle with heartbreak, depression, sorrow, pain, disappointment, loneliness, grief, isolation, despair, and just an endless list of, well, mistakes that I caused. One of the biggest sins I engaged in, was participating in hook up culture- and contracting an incurable STD. Btw, this std was contracted after I had only been intimate with 2 people in my entire life. So, one can imagine how unjust it feels to go from virgin to being seen as vermin amongst the conservatives and by men at large. I take full accountability for this sin, mind you. Still, as much as I try to hope, not despair or feel destroyed- a former me has passed- eternally. The depths of my sorrow are unspeakable... So I can relate to knowing what it feels like to lose a "future that you dreamed about". When I was a little girl, I was the biggest romantic I knew. I always dreamed about marriage and what that would look like, and NEVER imagined going from virgin to STD just after two people. I don't have it as difficult as some people, but sometimes I want to scream at God... Which is irrational, because it was my fault. Anyways, misery is real. I don't know where I was going with this. I guess only to say that somedays it feels difficult to look forward to anything, when you feel like everything you ever wanted has been destroyed and taken from you. I guess it really is a testament to the strength and love of God that I am still here.

[@sara_sofia_1984]

Maybe you can find someone who has the same STD and/or has repented from a previously promiscuous lifestyle. The truth is that even if you had been prefect in your behavior, you could have contracted an STD from a partner who cheated on you and lied to you... We can't control everything in life, but we can move forward with what we have and do our best. I have a daughter with a man I had to leave because he was abusive to me. I know that lowers my chances of finding a good husband. But I am trusting God's plan for me - if it is His will for me to be married, He will send a good man my way. All I have to do is to keep my heart open to it and have faith in God's plan and God's power. I hope this can bring you some comfort ❤

[@andcatlove]

Praying for you!

[@EDeezy83]

I never respond to other comments, but I know of three women, who have life-long STD’s and they all got married. It probably feels like the end of the world…I’m sure…but trust that God still has beautiful plans for you & your life🩷

[@CopperNTodd14]

My heart goes out to you. Please know that the Lord has not abandoned you. Rather, it sounds like He's asking you to draw nearer to Him, so you can forgive and experience the forgiveness that comes with true Love. This weekend's reading is about Job. Listen intently to Job's story. Sit with the Lord in quiet Adoration. He'll speak to you. Please know you are LOVED!

[@allisonclow6915]

Thank you for this video. My husband of almost 24 years passed away in February from 14 month battle with pancreatic cancer. We have 5 children. He was my best friend. He was a deep man of faith and believed in the power of redemptive suffering . He suffered so well. We miss him terribly and now I am trying to figure out life now without him. I am so grateful for my beautiful children, family and community. I am in a place where I don't know what God is doing and my trust is being tested but like St. Peter said, there is no where else to go. Please pray for me as we all navigate this new chapter and to remain in hope!

[@JordanSeibert]

I’m not sure if this comment will find Kendra, but her story is one that hits close to home. My wife has stage four cancer and has battled for many years. We also have a nine-year- old. Everything that Kendra says pierces my heart like an arrow. 😢🙏

[@AscensionPresents]

We will be praying for your wife!

[@Viviana315]

🙏🏽

[@eduardohoover2127]

My first wife passed away at 41. I really struggled mentally being a single dad. My second wife died at 39 and it was bearable. My father died at age 81; my mom has Alzheimers. I became recluse for a short time but my circle of friends got me past that rather quickly. September 28, 2022, I lost my home and belongings cars and all to a huricane. It was well with me because God shortly before showed me my possessions were possessing me. I had no problem walking away and my circle of friends helped me also. God told me buy a black shirt your son 38 will surely die. April 2,2023 he was mistakenly killed by police brutality shot to death. I am fine and working through getting justice for him and his three young children who have a drug addict for a mother. Please pray for the best for the children that they not end up in foster care. We all react to death different even in different deaths and losses. King David sat in sackcloth at his young son's death but went insane grieving over Absalom. Griefology is an interesting study.

[@jillrobinson1971]

Thank you for sharing your story. I have had so many losses, my current life is unrecognizable. First my sister died of Ovarian cancer at age 47, then my husband died after a long battle with Brain Cancer at age 47. Shortly after that, both my in-laws died and then my father passed away. I’m the caregiver for my mother. My brother in law moved away (sisters husband) and my other brother in law ( hiusbands brother) moved away as well. The whole family on both sides fell apart . Family never came in my house again., it makes them too sad. It’s just me, my daughter, friends and church family. And the Father, son and Holy Spirt! I’m so thankful I was able to get my daughter through school and now she’s in college. She also has health problems that are complicated and I had to learn how to manage them by myself…. Work is fine and I am blessed with a good income and health insurance. I had to work hard on friendships, old and new ones. I feel lost when I look at myself from the worlds eyes, but then I remember I’m a child of God and I stay focused on loving God and his people. Praying for everyone ❤

[@amandamendoza2880]

We lost our 3 month old daughter Oct 2023. In the months that have followed I can 100% say that I agree with you Kendra. Where else would we go. Lord have Mercy, prayers for your Family.

[@mcsmama]

@6:09 quote from St. Padre Pio (maybe!): "Blessed is the crisis that made you grow, the fall that made you gaze up to Heaven, the problem that made you look for God." Thank you, Kendra, & God bless you! 😇... this entire message was something I needed to hear today. It used to be a habit for me to share these kinds of videos with others by first saying, "I happened to come across this video on KZbin", but I KNOW I don't just "come across" these messages I need. Instead, God, in His wisdom, through His Holy Spirit, enables me to have these videos/messages placed before me when I need to hear them, & I can receive them, as long as I remain open to the gift that is being offered to me. As a single woman at an age where everyone else is retiring, who always longed for a family of my own, but who never met a man I felt could mutually join with me in entering a God-centered marriage-is-for-life commitment, I have often struggled with WHY God apparently intended that my home-life would remain solitary. I have always been what I have come to think of as "pathologically empathetic", in that I hurt deeply & prolongedly for the suffering of others, but I volunteer where I am able, & try to be supportive, both practically & spiritually, of others who struggle in their lives as well. Sometimes simply SEEING someone who too often feels invisible, perhaps by offering a "hello & God bless" with a smile, while looking them in the eyes, can be a huge blessing that buoys someone up & helps them hang on for that moment, & turn their attention back to The Lord. Invisibility is a terrible scourge for many in this life. 😢Living a solitary life makes that realization palpable, & so can be a blessing when it opens our eyes & hearts to the need of others to be seen... to stop feeling invisible, even for a moment. With so many friends & family members who have families where children have died, been stricken with horrific afflictions, or who have fallen away from relationship with Our Lord, I sometimes wonder if God was sparing me from the profound anguish of a child who might have suffered something so terrible, that my struggles for that child might have torn me away from my own relationship with God forever. It may have been, that I would have been too weak to hold onto Him, in the face of having to witness my beloved child suffer in such devastating manner. In any case, while I still often struggle with my lack of the family I had always hoped to have, I have gotten better at trusting that, regardless of the fact that what I would have chosen for myself was not to be, GOD KNEW the plan He had for me, & HE knows the WHY. In addition, HE DOES know what He's doing! TRUST in Him is something with which, like most others, I have long struggled, & it is something that is grown by hanging onto Him, especially through adversity, & KNOWING that He is good... He is ALL good, & He is ONLY good. Lord, thank you for your patient loving indulgence of my recurrent pitiful human failings... thank you for your relentless pursuit of me... thank you for every day you give me with another opportunity to "get it right" ... please Lord, help my unbelief, in Jesus' Name I pray.🐑✝🔥😇 ["Hope in the Face of Grief and Loss" (feat. Kendra Tierney) via Ascension Presents] [5.17.2024]

[@joandonnelly7206]

May God bless you and Peace be with you!!!

[@mcsmama]

@@joandonnelly7206 - So kind... thank you, Joan; may God's blessings & peace be yours as well! 😇 [5.19.2024]

[@patham1968]

Please pray for me and my family. My father passed away two years ago, it has been a struggle for mom and for us too because not only we miss dad, but carrying for mom emotionally and keeping her spirits balanced been hard. She had a Tripple by pass heart surgery last year and than had hip surgery and praise God he has given me the energy to take her to physical therapy twice a week, and I still work my fourth hours and take care of my own family. My daughter has thyroid health issues and heart palpitations and we still trying to find right doctor to help her, she only 26. My son has sleep apnea and other health concerns and because they are older they tell me only what they want to tell me because not want me to worry. I think I'm having digestive issues and I am tired too but keep asking God to give me health strength patience and energy to keep working, I need help support everyone. My husband pays for everything in the house hold so he helps so much. But I pray for him alot because he also has gone through his trials of health in the past and he has a lot on his plate too. Thank you for this video. We will pray for you too

[@Mai2727]

I'm praying for you

[@marieh9204]

Praying you and your children are healed in the name of Jesus cover yourself & your loved ones daily with the Blood❤❤❤❤❤

[@laurenk1853]

Hearing about your engagement the other day made me so happy. You and your family have been through so much. God can bring beauty from the ashes 🙏🏻

[@forlife84]

I was thinking this too. I wonder if this was recorded a while ago!

[@lisandragutierrez8587]

Please pray for my sister, Emily. For a transformed heart in her fight against Cancer. For healing, perseverance, comfort and patience. May the Holy Spirit enter her heart and help her to be the peace needed in her home.

[@loella_]

I am 46, I am a widow since last year and I am grieving a lot. Sending you hugs

[@PattyBio100]

Will pray for you and your family.

[@jeffbriem]

Your courage is a demonstration of heroic virtue.

[@user-kf8wb2cq4f]

It's important to come to terms with Life 's Challenges and..Disappointments. Life can be so painful at times.

[@LaCroixCreative]

Thank you. As a widow who has struggled over the last 10 years, I needed to hear what you had to stay. Praying for you! Please pray for me as well. ❤

[@YoGabs1964]

Kendra, and commenters below, thanks for sharing your stories and giving me hope. I Pray for all of you to use these trials to be closer to God. That amount of grace can only come from God. My story isn't quite like yours, but I can relate to grieving the potential life that you could've had. Also accepting that maybe your life no longer a reflection of the "Catholic ideal". Give it to God. In the darkest hours I pray, "God, use this". Repeating that simple line has helped me. God bless you all in your daily struggles.

[@spooneythebadger]

Terribly sorry for your loss. I pray God will give you what you need for the next stage of your life. I searched diligently for a good Catholic wife and now at age 54 feel very much abandoned by the Catholic Church that I was raised in. One of my protestant friends who is happily married with 5 children called-me-out today and told me that if I have any plans of finding a Christian wife, I need to start looking outside the Catholic Church. Please pray for me as I begin this next stage of my life.

[@mytwocents7303]

❤Thank you for your witness of faith and life in Christ. Pray for us without good marriages.

[@kmbehrens14]

Thank you for this reflection. I’ve been struggling to be joyful for years as I continue to hope for marriage. I sometimes feel weighed down by sorrow, and it’s often difficult to trust God when it feels like He has forgotten me or is withholding what everyone else seems to have. It always encourages me to know I am not alone in that feeling.

[@thatsfunny2051]

I feel you on that one

[@spooneythebadger]

I understand that feeling all too well. I wish I had some sage advice, but I don't (If I did, I would use it in my own life). Best I can offer is a prayer. Be well.

[@marybethmunive-ic8iz]

I’m so sorry for your loss. I recently went through a terrible event that has changed my vision of good and evil. I am not the same person and it has brought me closer to God. Thank you for sharing your story.

[@michaelcombs4545]

Blessed Zita walked this same path. Ask for her prayers.

[@branatons]

You have a very beautiful life, both past and present. Much respect and admiration.

[@Charlielizard]

I cannot say thank you enough for this video. My life has been turned upside down and I am living 330 miles from home and friends. Found a beautiful church where I find peace; however, the loss of going from married to alone practically overnight has shaken me. Your words spoke to me very clearly. Thank you and may God continue to Bless us with your presence. I'll keep you in my prayers. 🙏🏻✝️

[@AlexanderBrown77]

1 John 5 KJV ♥️ 13 These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.

[@Solidus517843]

Please pray for the repose of the soul of my younger brother, Drew, and my family during this most difficult time. Last month, I lost my younger brother to an intercranial brain hemmorhage. We laid him to rest last Wednesday; and the grief that my parents, I and the rest of my family is going through is just very heavy for us. My aunts and cousin were here for a little bit to offer support to offer a tremendous amount of help. But I am afraid of what will happen when it is only my parents and I. Oh heavenly Father, please give us strength. 🙏🏽❤️

[@kathrynmacgown6575]

I'll be praying for you and your family. Thank you for sharing.

[@tricia4563]

What a great video! God bless you and your family. I'd like to request prayer for a friend, Connie, who ended her life last Saturday after suffering from Spinal CSF Leaks for 5 years and for all of us in Connie's CSF leak support group dealing with this painful condition and the loss of our lives as we imagined, and also the lives of our amazing friends we've met and lost along the way. May God bless everyone❤

[@user-zo3qr9xq5e]

Please pray for my sister who is suffering from an early onset dementia. She is only 57.

[@Loweisme]

I'm sorry for your loss, Kendra. Thank you for being the first one I've found to say we don't have to like what new direction our life takes due to loss and suffering. My loss is my health and I'm a prisoner in my own home because it's painful to be active, plus both my daughters have been diagnosed with chronic immune diseases making it hard for them to be active. We're all spread apart in distance, so I rarely get to spend time with them or my grandsons. I give it all to God, but do have days when I can't concentrate on doing a full rosary and it becomes a day of lamenting to Him, but I've learned the world offers no consolation...only God does...He is my strength and my hope. I will add you and your family to my prayers.

[@sheilafreisthler4421]

Before my husband died, a good friend, who was a widow, asked me to pray for joy. Strange request, but I started doing that. On the day we were bringing my husband home from the hospital, the hospital chaplain asked how I was doing. I told him I was at peace, to which he responded, “it’s written all over your face.” Each person handles grief differently and there is no right or wrong. As you still have young children at home, you all will be added to my prayer list. May God continue to bless you.

[@01jtrani]

This is definitely my biggest struggle I have health issues at 26 that make it so atleast at the moment I can't work and I have often felt useless but I have been trying to keep faith in God and his plan even if it's not exactly what I want or how I planned

[@cabellero1120]

God help us all

[@peace-and-quiet]

I too struggle with the same. I have learned to pick up my rosary in those moments and pray for others. Naturally, I would prefer to be 100% healthy and productive DAILY, but I know I can't control that and so I put my trust in Him. I find comfort, peace and joy in praying for the conversion of all sinners leading us to world peace, the Holy Souls in Purgatory, my loved ones (living and passed) and especially, for the sick, suffering, dying and those who have just passed. I have great hope that my prayers are being delivered. God Bless! ✝️🙏🕊💕

[@bobtaylor170]

When I was seven, I was almost killed in a mass m*rd*r, and have had severe disabilities ever since. I missed my twenties, too. It maddened me at the time. I still don't understand the "why?" of it, but God is good, Jesus died for us, and His resurrection assures us who believe in Him that we will be resurrected, too, and that all of the things which tortured us in this life will make sense and will be compensated for. I recommend always that hurting people not only read the Psalms, but make them their pattern for prayer. You don't have to be formal with God. You can pour your heart out to Him, as the psalmist in Psalm 88, for example, does. You can be angry with Him, crushed with disappointment, heartbroken by what He has allowed into your life. He certainly understands. Did he upbraid Jesus because of Jesus' agony of soul in Gethsemane? He did not! And He won't upbraid you, either.

[@elizanagrey9576]

This is very inspiring. It is a good thing for our suffering to draw us closer to God.

[@Jade_902]

3 years tomorrow. He’s still my husband.

[@CynthiaCampbell0316]

Please pray for the healing and conversion of my husband and the restoration of his faith our marriage our friendship our family May God richly bless him by pouring His Holy Spirit upon him

[@timschooler]

Such beautiful faith, God bless your family!

[@Sandra-fe8ku]

Thank you for sharing this. I think I needed this right now as I've been going through an incredibly difficult time lately mourning and grieving a life I wish I had and wondering whether it's still possible given my circumstances, and when that life might come into being. I shall keep you and your family in my prayers, that he may shower you and yours with His grace and love and strengthen you in this time. I would be most grateful if you would keep me in your prayers that God may show me the way in this wilderness that seems never-ending and that He may show me some light in my situation that feels so dark and impossible.

[@firstttfoundation]

Thank you sharing your story you can be a good teacher

[@eileencarlson4276]

I too am living a life I did not expect as a result of my husband’s death over two years ago. Your talk has given me a another way of looking at my situation. Thank you.

[@Eliza-cn5ii]

This message is so needed! I just recently realized that desiring the life I didn't get (husand and children) was coming between my relationship with God. The gospel never promises a good life but for some reason many Christians feel cheated when life is rough.

[@MrEduardoVelez]

Thank you for sharing your life with us. God Bless You.

[@tsvetomirtorozov7433]

Dear Kendra, thank you for sharing your story, and I am sorry for your loss. I have experienced loss too, my mom at the age 19 (I am grateful for having had a mom) and I have schizophrenia. It was full blown schizophrenia, and it was 5 years that were absolutely brutal, more than once it was as though I had lost everything and felt condemned, but as of recently I have made my peace with my loss, for my suffering was not only part of my cross but my key, way to heaven, and so I am grateful for it, for what I have had that was good and for my losses that made me grow. Above all else, I have a relationship with the Lord, Who is with me, as He is with you, stay strong and persevere in prayer!

[@user-mv2tg8hc8c]

Thank you for your words!

[@DianaSanchez-lq9no]

Thank you for sharing your story. My mother was a victim of an auto pedestrian accident. She died in December of 2023. I ask that you please pray for my family and myself as we do our best to navigate this very difficult grief journey.

[@OriginalAcefanatic]

What a wonderful attitude and outlook she has. I wish I could look at life the way she does. Bless her heart!

[@debbie2027]

Eternal rest grant unto Jim O Lord and let perpetual light shine upon him. May all the souls of the faithful departed through the mercy of God rest in peace. May our Lord's peace which surpasses all understanding be with all who grieve .... So sorry for your loss

[@melyap8636]

Thanks for this video. I recently lost my dear husband. I'm trying to "re-purpose" my life after this loss.

[@bobbiemichaelsNyc86]

Thank you for sharing this video. I'm 38 years old and I definitely did not think this would be the life would have and am trying to keep the Faith and move forward 🙏

[@victorhippo]

This gave me goosebumps. When you say that discernment is not just a youth and young adult thing it hit home for some reason, despite being in my 20s myself. I still have a lot to learn but I'll bring that phrase in my heart. Thanks for sharing 🙏🏽

[@Akris30]

Ive been struggling a lot. Some days are good and others are so difficult. I don't know why I'm hiding from God. I feel like Im not worthy to ask for help somehow. I know I tend to fall to despair, so I am trying not to, but then I think of the people I've lost this year. I think of the difficulties within my extended family and it makes me so angry that people don't talk to one another when we don't have tomorrow promised. Please pray for me. To call out to our Lord.

[@marialynch4726]

Praying, friend. You are good, and you are worthy of His love. He wouldn't have died for you if you weren't.

[@bobtaylor170]

You aren't worthy of the love of God. None of us is! It's why Jesus died for us. In Him, we are as worthy of the love of God as Jesus is.

[@janed811]

Wow! So beautiful!

[@jeditamara]

From what I see, you have had the life you wanted, yoru love just passed away too soon for you, but you rlife is so full, I would give anything to have 20% of what you currently have.

[@clareschreiber8525]

Thank you so much for sharing your story. My husband too, died of pancreatic cancer in 12/22. I always heard it’s Gods will and I prayed for Gods will, so I thought it was Gods will. Thx for explaining that.

[@cherylmagee7245]

Catholic widows need videos like this. No one teaches us how to navigate grief. Especially as a Catholic. Everyone in your life will be looking at you. To see how a Catholic deals with widowhood. Thank you for this.

[@nmocte1]

Dang. I used to find her so annoying because she seemed to have it all even without her husband. But I needed this. I guess I needed her suffering because I’m currently suffering too. Thanks Kendra for a fresh perspective on my prolonged sorrow. Please pray for my marriage.

[@jjjone683]

Please pray for my friend Ellie VM who was recently widowed suddenly by her husband of 47 years.

[@darlowmaxwell7346]

Beautiful message. As a widower, much resonates.

[@jeanpetesch9075]

Beautiful testimony. Thank you. I needed this reminder of God’s faithfulness and mercy this morning. God bless you. I will keep you in my prayers.

[@linetmeneses4528]

This is exactly where I am right now. My life took a drastic change three months ago when my husband confessed he stopped loving me and no longer saw himself with me. He left the home and left me with our two young children, 5 and 7 year olds. I cannot begin to describe the deep heartache and how my life changed in an instant. I grief the life I had imagined for us so much! I told The Lord this was not what I wanted and asked Him what to do if I desire with all my heart to fight for our marriage but he does not. Please I humbly ask, pray for us.

[@williamgilley7061]

I am southern Baptist. I totally understand where you are coming from sister. I pray the Lord Jesus Christ give you comfort and peace. I've been wrestling with something similar for several years. Not what I thought would happen. But I am fully confident that God is for me. Thank you for sharing and what you said about your Job struggle. I have researched that book repeatedly. I too concluded that God didn't do the evil to Job but allowed it. Job was never privy to the conversation between God and the devil. There definitely was a reason, a cause. In Jobs case it was for good. I'm still trying to sort out what good came from my struggle. Thank you again and again I pray the Lord Jesus Christ bless and keep you and your family in Jesus Christ name amen

[@tamburina]

Kendra I am so sorry. God bless you and your family; I will pray for you. This is so hard, this is not the way it's supposed to be. My son, 30, was just diagnosed with stage 4 metastastic melanoma and its in his lungs and brain. He was also in the Marine Corps. He's been in treatment for a couple of months, but we haven't heard how it's going yet. We put our trust in God because He loves us and cares for us. Sometimes what we want isn't God's plan, but we have to submit to His will. So, whatever happens with my son I have to accept, I leave it to God. I have Jesus. He is near to those with a broken heart. Please, say a prayer for my family if you happen to think of us. Thank you.

[@jaydisilvestri]

This is fantastic. What a great message.

[@WaldorfElephants]

Beautiful video. Thank you very, very much 🙏 When it comes to seeking comfort and peace in Our Lord, that part is very clear to me, I just don't understand, where in my heart (metaphorically) should I keep my wife, who passed away, and our whole relationship? Is it all just over for good, and in heaven we will not want it or enjoy it anymore? I had a very special and close bond with my wife and the thought of everything being ended toils with my soul... Marriage is just incredibly wonderful and beautiful miracle that God gave us. Becoming one flesh and one body with someone you deeply love, through sacrament of marriage was a life-changing experience for me. Yet I do not understand, why has God given us this beautiful opportunity to become as one, through marriage and then for it to be ended in eternity? She died 6 weeks ago, we've been married a little over a year, and I've been together with her for 6 years. All of our relationship, she was battling cancer, and in the end, her body gave out on the treatments... I miss her so very much, that my body and soul just feels numb all the time...

[@spooneythebadger]

Eternal rest grant unto her, O Lord, and may perpetual light shine upon her. May she rest in peace.

[@WaldorfElephants]

@@spooneythebadger Thank you for the prayers. It is very precious and endearing 🙏

[@woodytheflyingdog]

I'm sorry for your loss, thank you for your words of comfort, may the Lord bless & keep you.

[@user-kk2ct3rc2m]

This reminds me of My Divorce, only cause I had Surgery for Epilepsy and JST trying TO keep ON Goin. I think there's a reason FOR Everything. GOD Bless You Ms Kendra and Everyone Who listens. ☝️💯💯🌹✌️💯

[@sandragarcia2472]

Thank you so much and well said about people saying its Gods plan, I always was confused about that too and I know that there is evil in this world. I always question this and you made it clear in this video thank you so much. I will share this as much as I can. I have couple of friends and Family. Thank you Kendra

[@rebeccaparker1554]

Beautiful thoughts to share with the world

[@rob46872]

Please pray for my niece and her husband. Her husband died unexpectedly on May 14 after 2 1/2 years of marriage.

[@VGD1229]

This was articulate, relatable and well done 🙏🏼😊

[@elfchild9]

6:15 That Padre Pio quote hit hard. Thank you for this.

[@marialynch4726]

It is not a quote from Padre Pio. It first appeared on the Internet about ten years ago.

[@LifeWithNana12]

This was very beautiful. Praise God for your witness!

[@pius_xiv]

What you mentioned at the end about the “Catholic ideal” is very interesting and I hope to hear more open discussion of this concept

[@rashadfoux6927]

Please pray for my family

[@kevk3853]

What a beautiful message

[@ruthortega5822]

Thank you for sharing. Very inspiring, honest and sad at the same time. May God give you the strength to carry on and bring you closer to him. God bless you and your family.

[@user-xz8wc9uc1n]

Beautiful. Thank you. I will be praying for you.

[@williamscott3123]

Thank you for sharing. God Bess you and your family.

[@monicalomeli452]

Thank you for sharing your story! God sent it to me in a perfect time! Please pray for myself family and myself, may we be patient to Gods timing. Thank you! ❤

[@mattperetin5440]

I love Tanner's Annunciation. My sons (& I) call it "my" painting; we visited it in the Philadelphia Museum of Art when they were little. Mary's fiat is a one word Gospel.

[@0000012jane]

Thank You God for Your providence 🙏🏽 with this video! Please pray for my family, my mental health, and for people who are suffering and in need of love & support 🙏🏽🌱

[@TadSanDiego]

Thank you for sharing your story

[@nicholasbishop6731]

Please my health and my wife's health. Thank you.

[@Bob.W.]

Thanks. God bless you and your family.

[@brigid66]

God bless you and thank you for your honest views. 🙏⚘

[@AnaSilviaOrtegaSaenz1]

Thank you 🙏🏻.

[@nancyanderson697]

Thank you ❤️🙏

[@coffeebirdtree]

God bless you and your family

[@littlehouseguy7782]

I am just so, so sorry. My aunt, in her last six weeks, said that she could ask, "Why me?" but she then said that she could ask a much harder question: Why someone else?

[@xavier736]

Thanks for sharing I will pray for you and your family. Please pray for me and my family God bless

[@wyndao9621]

God bless, thank you.

[@JS-hj8rg]

Except my children's father is still around. I fought to keep our family together, but it just wasn't meant to be. I poured my heart out, praying and crying, but it wasn't for ment to be,. It's been 11 years, and it still hurts seeing my kids grow up without their dad. They are 19 and 17 they feel the loss of what if.

[@padmeasmr]

Thank you ❤

[@greenhills6168]

Prayer request; please pray for my child to come back to sacramental life

[@JenniferMiller-sx1xn]

🙏🏼❤️ grief and finding your life not at all the way you thought is hard

[@bubls275]

Please pray for my family. I won't go into details, but we are facing a crisis right now that I couldn't have possibly imagined. I don't know what to do and I need guidance from God.

[@Marcia811]

Thank you.

[@nicoleborja2124]

😭 ty for sharing ❤️

[@caterinadc5567]

Thank you Kendra for sharing your story with us. And thank you Ascension Presents, for allowing us to hear from someone who's actually suffering this experience of 'lost vocation' and grief about the life they don't have. It's hard for me to feel understood in the concrete realities of my life, by speakers who seem to lead Catholic-perfect lives. (With clear vocations, strong and healthy Catholic communities and relationships, etc.) It sounds like Kendra did have one of these Catholic-perfect lives, and for her sake I'm so sorry for that loss. (And thankful for the remaining supports it does sound like she still has.) And at the same time, I now feel more able to hear whatever she might have to say about being Catholic in this world, because it feels more like she's living in the world I'm living in. Perhaps one of the goods God will bring from this evil will be from the encouragement that Kendra can bring others from within her Job-like suffering, which is a different kind of encouragement than we get from people who seem to be having constant mountaintop experiences. Anyway. I don't want to be some kind of creepy grim voice painting this terrible thing that happened to Kendra's family as a positive. It truly isn't. As Kendra notes, evil is real, and death, the death of her husband (may he rest in peace), is a tragic result of evil in the world, not God's loving and preferential will for us. It is a tragedy that Kendra's husband died, full stop. I just... also appreciate hearing her speak about it, and I hope more faithful Catholics will speak with honesty from their difficult circumstances. It can be helpful to hear and to see that the rest of us aren't just forgotten or rejected by God for not having the picture-perfect lives so often portrayed on our screens. To be totally honest, I've wondered repeatedly if that's what God wants from my life too. For me to be a witness to others of how to be Catholic when you're not married, not a nun, not reliably employed, not safe in your family/community, etc etc. Like, it's an experience plenty of people have, and maybe God wants some of us to be the salt in that part of the human loaf. Showing how to be Christ and bring Christ to that level of life experience. It doesn't mean you don't grieve the loss of lacking all those good things though (like spouse or community or material safety, etc). But He's there with us in it, and maybe there are people He's reaching in a special way by allowing us to be in it too.

[@almostthere5466]

I pray for you

[@christopherrangel1617]

I am afraid I’ll never find my true love, my truly true bride in a truly true sacramental and consummate marriage. I was recently divorced and annulled with 2 beautiful daughters ages 6 and 3. I am engaged to a woman I fear doesn’t really love me or her love died for me over this past year or so. I am so alone and need a best friend, sister in Christ and wife with all the longings of my heart. I pray this woman doesn’t abandon me too. I lost my job, been looking for work for now over a year spread thin working 4 jobs that don’t amount to my real job I lost. I hardly see my daughters. My relationship with this new fiancée is rocky more so on her side of it. The relationship has been 19 months of long distance and expensive flights to visit, etc. I feel so afraid and alone. I refuse to despair in my hope for true love but perhaps that’s why Saint Jude is my patron, because this is a thing almost despaired of. It’s not that, but it’s extremely desolate and lonely and sad with so many tears of not feeling loved or lovable by a woman I thought was going to.