josiah+co. Blog — faith
One decade
Melissa Sulley faith Grief Loss Miscarriage Awareness Motherhood Parenting after loss
This past decade has been extremely painful and beautiful; full of grief and joy. I graduated university. Left my church. Moved cities. Had my heart broken. Lost friends. I fell in love with Hamilton. Found a new church. Made new friends. I discovered the Holy Spirit. Lost my faith. Discovered new expressions of faith. Left the church again. I became a wife and a mother. I birthed both life and death. I broke up with myself as I learned how to parent, and learned how to parent after loss, again and again and again....
Sitting together
Melissa Sulley faith Grief Loss Miscarriage Awareness Parenting after loss
I’ve been reflecting a lot on what it means to wrestle together. To provide each other with the space and freedom to ask some of the deepest questions we have buried deep within.Grief has a tendency to cause these questions to bubble up, to rise to the surface until we cannot contain them anymore. Who is God really?Is he actually good?If everything happens for a reason, did God will my babies to die or did God cause x, y and z?Traditionally we have been taught to shove these questions below the surface. How dare we question the God of the...
The Middle - Aly's Story
Melissa Sulley faith Grief Guest Post Loss Miscarriage Miscarriage Awareness Motherhood Parenting after loss Pregnancy and loss awareness Resources Support
Often, we hear stories about pregnancy loss after there’s a happy ending, redemption…a rainbow baby that eases the pain after the storm. There is a definite need for people to hear these stories. They have a place, and they give a sense of hope to families who have lost their unborn babies. These are the types of stories that got me through my first miscarriage. Knowing that this is fairly common (1 in 4 pregnancies end in miscarriage), and that there was light at the end of the tunnel was promising.
Becoming unpregnant
Melissa Sulley faith Grief Loss Miscarriage Miscarriage Awareness Missed Miscarriage Motherhood Parenting after loss Pregnancy and loss awareness Support
I walk a fine line between grief and relief. Grieving the life we lost, and yet relieved I’m no longer pregnant.Grieving the son we will never get to know, and yet relieved because I was terrified to parent three children on earth. I was excited to welcome a third babe on this earth, but I was terrified by how a third...
From heartbreak to healing
Melissa Sulley faith Grief Miscarriage Miscarriage Awareness Missed Miscarriage Motherhood Parenting after loss Pregnancy and loss awareness Stillbirth Support
Five years ago I had a dream. I had a dream that I gave birth to a son, our second son. His name was Josiah, and I was told Josiah meant ‘God heals’. Little did I know months later I would become pregnant with this second son of mine, and I would have to say goodbye too soon. I can still feel the cold jelly on my bare stomach as the ultrasound tech left the room to ‘check that the images were turning out okay.’ My swollen belly exposed to an empty room, the minutes passing, and my mind running...