Finding Light in the Darkness

If you are grieving, you have come to the right place for help, hope, and support. You are not alone. Here you will find more than stories of others who have walked through loss. You will also find counseling resources, grief support programs, and practical guidance that point to the comfort and peace found in God’s faithfulness.

Our prayer is that what you encounter here meets you in your pain and helps you take the next small step toward healing. Even in the darkest places, God’s light continues to shine.

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Select the type of loss you are experiencing to jump directly to stories and resources created for that situation.

Treasures in Darkness

Please accept a free gift from us: the audiobook of Treasures in Darkness.

In this honest, hope-filled book, Sharon Betters shares the story of losing her teenage son and points to God’s promise in Isaiah to provide “treasures” even in seasons of grief. Whether your loss is recent or long ago, Treasures in Darkness offers encouragement that God is present and loving, even in the darkest times.

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Loss of a child

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Sudden Loss of a Daughter and a Dad's Grief
Sudden Loss of a Daughter and a Dad's Grief

You start your day thinking it will be like any other. And then a text with four words, “Eva not breathing. Pray.” Within hours, the unexpected death of your daughter propels you and your family down into the deepest sorrow you have ever experienced. In this conversation with Sharon Betters, Mel Lawrenz introduces us to his beloved daughter Eva and how her unexpected death led his family into the read more…

Loss of A Child
Loss of A Child

Loss of a Child is MARKINC's first resource, encouraging over 2 million hearts with help, hope, and healing. In this interview, Dr. Chuck and Sharon Betters discuss their story as parents who lost Mark, their sixteen year old son, in a devastating car accident. They are honest and they are real about their struggle to not only face each day without Mark but also to reconcile the love of God with His sovereign care.

Hope In The Midst Of Grief
Hope In The Midst Of Grief

In this wide-ranging interview, two mothers who have experienced the grief of losing their children transparently answers questions from how to push the question “why” through the grid of God’s love and sovereignty, to how to protect marriages assaulted by grief. Nancy’s loss of two children uniquely qualifies her to offer help and hope in sorrow’s darkest night.

A Grieving Mother Shares Her Heart
A Grieving Mother Shares Her Heart

In this poignant conversation, a son, Dr. Chuck L. Betters, talks to his mother, Sharon Betters, about her grief journey after the loss of her sixteen-year-old son, Mark. They use Sharon’s book, Treasures in Darkness as a jumping off place and dive right into some of the hardest places of grief with the goal of offering help and hope to other grieving parents read more…

When Your Son Commits Suicide - Grieving Moms Finding Hope
When Your Son Commits Suicide - Grieving Moms Finding Hope

Jacke Rose, founder of Grieving Moms Finding Hope, joins Sharon Betters to talk about her journey to find hope and purpose after the death by suicide of her son, Randy. The loss of a child cannot be fathomed but Jacke’s son also unsuccessfully attempted read more…

Disability, Death, Guilt and Grief
Disability, Death, Guilt and Grief

In this moving and sometimes emotional conversation, Sharon Betters talks to Susanna Musser and her friend and counselor, Heidi Scott, about the sudden, accidental death of Susanna’s adopted son, Tommy. This conversation will not only encourage others in similar places, but will give listeners a renewed understanding of the burdens some parents bear and how to help them.

Loss of a spouse

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When Your Wife Dies with Jim Meyer
When Your Wife Dies with Jim Meyer

Dr. Chuck Betters talks with Dr. Jim Meyer who lost his first wife. Jim shares the story of his family’s sorrow and cautions listeners that though someone who is broken might look whole on the outside, grief and depression might be ever present companions. Jim describes the depression he experienced and how his journey produced in him a passion for offering help to others who are grieving. Jim also shares how the Lord is redeeming his pain through his marriage to Kathy.

A Widow's Journey
A Widow's Journey

“So who am I now that there’s only one place at the table….one pillow with a head dent, one towel damp after a shower? There’s only one toothbrush in the holder. The seat is never left up anymore. I can still write…

Living with Grief and Thriving After Loss
Living with Grief and Thriving After Loss

When Clarissa Moll’s young husband, Rob, died unexpectedly, she soon realized she was at a crossroads. Would she walk toward hope or slide into hopelessness? In this conversation with Sharon Betters, Clarissa answers such questions as: Is there any way to prepare for such a tragedy? Are there stages for grief? What kind of work can grief do in our hearts that grows the fruit of the spirit? How is it helpful to “welcome” an emotion like fear – how does dissecting an emotion help us keep those emotions in check – or should we even try to keep them in check? What about regrets? Read more…

Intentional Grieving
Intentional Grieving

In this poignant conversation with Sharon Betters, a little over a year after the death of her beloved pastor husband, Sherry shares how Mike helped prepare her to be intentional in life after his absence. Her story will not only encourage widows but anyone who struggles with this foreign land of grief.

Cancer & Grief: A Conversation with Elizabeth Groves
Cancer & Grief: A Conversation with Elizabeth Groves

Melanoma, the word strikes fear into the hearer, especially when it is a diagnosis for a loved one. Al Groves and his wife, Libbie, heard these words and knew life would never be the same. In this  conversation with Sharon Betters, Libbie shares the journey that her family experienced in the year after her husband Al’s diagnosis of terminal cancer. She offers her family’s story as a means of coming alongside of others who are struggling with cancer, God and grief.

Loss of a family member

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Can You Just Sit With Me?
Can You Just Sit With Me?

Days, months, and years after the loss of her sister, Natasha Smith tried to hide the grief she carried. But the pandemic took away her ability to hide her sorrow and her five-year-old’s response to her unexpected tears gave her permission to grieve – not in a room by herself but with her https://markinc.org/help-and-hope/can-you-just-sit-with-me-with-natasha-smithread more…

When Your Brother Dies and You're 11 Years Old
When Your Brother Dies and You're 11 Years Old

In this sometimes emotional conversation, Doug shares with Dr. Chuck F. Betters some of the ways his brother’s death affected him and how grief for a child is different than the grief of an adult. It’s our hope that Doug’s story will help parents understand the grief of their children a little better and also encourage those who have lost siblings at a young age.

Hope When A Child Loses A Parent
Hope When A Child Loses A Parent

Joy was 10 years old when her mother lost her battle with aggressive breast cancer. Her two little sisters looked to her for mothering. She became her father’s confidante as he tried to navigate grief, single parenthood, and looking for a new wife. Joy’s story gives listeners a glimpse into how the loss of a parent can create an ever widening circle of grief that takes years to process.

Infant loss

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Miscarriage: Deeply Traumatic, Tragically Common
Miscarriage: Deeply Traumatic, Tragically Common

In this conversation,Jessalyn Hutto brings hope to women who grieve the loss of their children through miscarriage. She offers a priceless gift to those women coming behind her who have experienced such deep loss. Jessalyn reminds listeners that Jesus cares very deeply about every child who is lost to miscarriage and He cares very deeply about every mother who is deprived of that life.

Carrying a Baby Who Will Die
Carrying a Baby Who Will Die

About one million babies world-wide die each year within 24 hours of birth. What if you knew from the time you were about five months pregnant that your baby would be one of those children? In this conversation, Sharon Betters talks to Diane Bansbach about what it was like for her to learn her much wanted baby girl, Amy, might not survive birth, let alone live outside her mother’s womb. Diane and Sharon share a few tears as Diane steps back into that season of loss and grief and tells Amy’s story in a way that offers hope and counsel to those facing a similar tragedy.

Stillbirth: From Empty Arms to Hope and Healing
Stillbirth: From Empty Arms to Hope and Healing

Days away from the joy of holding their first child, Bill and Michelle feel their world crumbling as the doctor’s words settle in to their souls, “There is no heartbeat.” Justin and Carrie look forward to welcoming their second child into their home when their doctor gives them the same horrific news.  Two couples, two responses to loss that seems almost impossible to bear.

Additional Resources

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God Will Make a Way
God Will Make a Way

For over twenty-five years Dr. Betters preached God is the builder of broken bridges and brings beauty from ashes. In this series preached not long after the death of his son, Dr. Betters does not shy away from asking the hard questions and sharing his own faith struggles to reconcile God’s love with His sovereignty.


Surprised by Suffering
Surprised by Suffering

In this very personal series preached shortly after the death of his sixteen-year-old son, Mark, Dr. Betters invites the congregation into his family grief journey. Dr. Betters acknowledges the “hell on earth” experienced by his family as he recounts the days before their son’s accident where God seemed to be preparing them for unexpected suffering. He shares specific scriptures God was using to help them get through each day of sorrow, where God promises the “hell on earth” would not last forever but after suffering “a little while” the Lord “himself will restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast”, as recorded in 1 Peter 5:10, Psalm 27. He draws attention to the questions of the Psalmist in Psalm 44 and the promise of Romans 8 that all things will come together for good for those who love Jesus. This series is a precious gift of hope in the midst of wrestling to walk by faith when suffering suddenly shatters our hearts.


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Why Am I Not Comforted by God in My Grief, Pain, and Suffering? | Ask Dr. Betters
Why Am I Not Comforted by God in My Grief, Pain, and Suffering? | Ask Dr. Betters

In this episode, Dr. Betters answers the question, "What if the pain of life has become too hard to bear? What if there have been too many substantial losses to handle life? Will we simply die with broken hearts in the end? God hears us and tells us so in scripture, so why can't we seem to be comforted?"

What Do You Say to a Grieving Person? | Ask Dr. Betters
What Do You Say to a Grieving Person? | Ask Dr. Betters

In this episode, Dr. Betters answers the question, "My friend's dad just died. When I am around my friend, I don't know what to say to her. What do you say to a grieving person?"

How Do We Say That the Lord Restored Job's Losses? | Ask Dr. Betters
How Do We Say That the Lord Restored Job's Losses? | Ask Dr. Betters

In this episode, Dr. Betters answers the question, "How do we say that the Lord restored Job's losses when he lost 7 sons and 3 daughters? I understand he had 10 more children, but how could that possibly be seen as a restoration?"

Can Prayer Heal the Sick? | Ask Dr. Betters
Can Prayer Heal the Sick? | Ask Dr. Betters

In this episode, Dr. Betters answers the question, “Does it really matter to pray if we or a loved one is sick? In that God doesn't change his mind. Our lives are already set…does praying to be well actually do any good?”

How Is God Using My Physical Pain for Good? | Ask Dr. Betters
How Is God Using My Physical Pain for Good? | Ask Dr. Betters

In this episode, Dr. Betters answers the question, "The Bible says that ‘God works all things together for the good of those who love him (Rom 8:28)’. How is God using my physical pain for good? What good can come from terrible pain that probably will have no end?"

Does God Want Me to Stay in an Abusive Marriage? | Ask Dr. Betters - Deconstructing One's Faith
Does God Want Me to Stay in an Abusive Marriage? | Ask Dr. Betters - Deconstructing One's Faith

In this episode, Dr. Betters answers the question, "Within the first weeks of marriage, I knew my husband was abusive…I try not to trigger him, but I’m exhausted and afraid. I was taught God hates divorce. So I feel like that is not an option, but is this what God wants for me?"

How Can I Trust God When He Allows So Much Pain? | Ask Dr. Betters - Deconstructing One's Faith
How Can I Trust God When He Allows So Much Pain? | Ask Dr. Betters - Deconstructing One's Faith

In this episode, Dr. Betters answers the question, "…I question everything about God. Our world is so messed up, so many terrible things happen, including friends who have died from drugs and one who even committed suicide. You say God is sovereign and I can trust Him. But how can I trust a God who doesn’t stop pain? Sometimes I wonder if there is even a God."

How Do I Heal After Being Hurt by the Church? | Ask Dr. Betters - Deconstructing One's Faith Series
How Do I Heal After Being Hurt by the Church? | Ask Dr. Betters - Deconstructing One's Faith Series

In this episode, Dr. Betters answers the question, "I grew up as a church kid, my parents were leaders in the church…But as an adult I am seeing how mean church people are – how they use people – and think nothing of betraying people like my parents. I can’t stand going to church and I have such anger and bitterness. I don’t want to be like this but I can’t let go of the hurt."

How Do I Do It?
How Do I Do It?

In this episode, Dr. Betters answers the question, "How can I maintain or strengthen my relationship with God during grief?"

Where Can I Find Help?
Where Can I Find Help?

In this episode, Dr. Betters answers the question, "How do I find resources to help me with my grief?" Grief Resources: https://markinc.org/grief-resources

Do I Need Help?
Do I Need Help?

In this episode, Dr. Betters answers the question, "How do I know if I need a counselor while experiencing grief?"

Where Is The Balance?
Where Is The Balance?

In this episode, Dr. Betters answers the question, "How can I balance grieving and living a fulfilling life?"

Ask Dr. Betters

Ask Dr. Betters is a topical video series where Dr. Chuck F. Betters answers your questions on suffering and the sovereignty of God.

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In His Grip

In His Grip is the preaching and teaching ministry of Dr. Chuck F. Betters that will help men and women grow in their faith.

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Counseling Services

Anchored Virtual Biblical Counseling offers confidential, Scripture-based guidance to help you find hope, healing, and strength in Christ.

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Help & Hope

Help & Hope audio stories address life's darkest circumstances that are often difficult to discuss, yet need to be faced as we help one another walk by faith.

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Daily Treasure

Daily Treasure is a daily written devotional, providing insights, wisdom and truth that give hope and comfort.

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Grief Share

GriefShare provides a supportive community where you can find comfort, understanding, and practical help as you navigate your grief.

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