Toby Mac shares his heart wrenching story about he loss of his son

When Toby said that he didn't think he knew grief until it hit him with the loss of his son,I think it hit a chord with all of us that were unfortunate to suffer this type of fate.

The loss of a child is a unique kind of loss because no one truly understands how to bury their own child. We were taught that our children will outlive us and bury us, not the other way along.

I truly understood the words of Toby Mac when I suffered my own loss when the pain medication Maria was on for her orthopedic surgery failed to metabolize in her system. Like Toby Mac, my daughter essentially died in her sleep.

I remember June 9th quite well. It was a Saturday afternoon when we were given permission to bring her home where we were anticipating a summer of celebration with friend parties, physical therapy to prepare her for the 5th grade class at Legacy Christian Academy where her friends were waiting for her arrival. Instead of celebration, we were thrust into the deeep hole of despair of which I wonder if we would ever see day light.

When I spoke with others facing similar losses I was struck by the similarity of stories. Grief hurts.Grief requires work to get through the journey. It takes sharing our pain with those willing to climb down into the muck and mire of it. Most people, I learned aren't willing to go to those dark places with you, but when you enter that dark place you will find new friends who clearly understand what you're going through. Just like a couple we barely knew came over to our place the moment they heard that Maria had died. We would learn that they went through this journey when the man's wife accidentally backed over their toddler daughter. As they went through their journey they found the compassion to reach out to others facing similar fates.

As Christians we are given the gift of the holy spirit that allows us to communicate with our loving God and minister to those who struggle with loss.

I urge you to cry out to God when loss occurs. Don't shut him out, nor don't stop attending Church, but place one foot in front of the other and keep on doing the same rituals you did before the loss. Do not drown your sorrows in a bottle of rum, or some that recreational marijuana because those are temporary fixes to the problem of your broken heart. Jesus Christ wants to be your redeemer and healer. He alone will walk with you every step of the way of this journey.