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A Time to Grieve: Journeying Through Grief Book 1

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Book 1 is designed to be sent three weeks after the death of a loved one, so it arrives just before the one-month anniversary of the loss--right around the time when the casserole dishes have been returned, the phone calls and visits have tapered off, and the painful reality of the loss is setting in

41 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2004

7 people are currently reading
122 people want to read

About the author

Kenneth C. Haugk

27 books15 followers

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5 stars
179 (50%)
4 stars
126 (35%)
3 stars
41 (11%)
2 stars
7 (1%)
1 star
0 (0%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 52 reviews
Profile Image for Anne.
588 reviews98 followers
December 24, 2015
I put off grieving for the loss of my mom on October 3, 2012. I spent so much time getting my Dad settled at our home, finding doctors for him in our town, getting him set up with the VA, finding a church that he liked, getting the things he didn't want to keep ready to sell, that I didn't find time to grieve and I think I did it on purpose.

This is the first book of the series and answered many questions that I had about grieving. I knew some about grieving as I went to a seminar called "Grieving the Loss of the Hoped for Child" since I have a child with disabilities.

Grieving the loss of your mother is much different and this book was very helpful. I can't wait for the church to send me the other 3.

I am reading this book again because now I've lost my father. The book but none with me again but in a different way due to this being a different loss after being his caregiver.

Profile Image for Raymond.
953 reviews5 followers
February 27, 2019
Early in the book is a description of typical feelings and I concurred with most of those.
Our book club recently read A Man called Ove and then recently watched the movie Ove movie with difficulty as when we read the book I had no notion that I too would soon be a widower with equal love of my deceased wife (but then not self destructive as Ove)!
Profile Image for Kevin Keating.
828 reviews17 followers
December 18, 2019
A thoughtful short book that I think can be helpful to people suffering a recent loss.
Profile Image for Lauren R. Santoro.
176 reviews2 followers
June 30, 2025
A must read for anyone going through the loss of a loved one. Helpful and practical to those supporting those going through loss too. Short read but so much in here to process and unpack. So much harm is done by how we talk about and comment on someone else’s loss and their grief process - this book contains none of these things. A balm to the soul.

Grief is normal, natural, and necessary. Give yourself permission to grieve - your grief is unique - it will look different than anyone else’s grief.

You were never intended to suffer alone.

The worst kind of grief is your own - even others grieving the same loved one as you will grieve differently.

In grief, put your own needs first. Find coping methods that are right for you (as long as they are healthy and don’t harm others). “Whatever method you choose, find a way to allow your feelings to move from within yourself to outside yourself.” James E. Miller

Grief affects our relationship with God. It’s crucial to be ourselves - to be honest with God. Tell God what you truly feel. Don’t mistake feeling abandoned by God for being abandoned by God. In some mysterious way, God grieves and suffers with you (still unpacking that part …).

“I feel just that terrible pain of loss, of God not wanting me, of God not being God, of God not really existing.” Mother Teresa
Profile Image for Katrine Austin.
543 reviews22 followers
January 13, 2018
This short but powerful book just made me sob and sob. Exactly what I needed right now. Some time to grieve and weep and just be.
Profile Image for Courtney Phillips.
30 reviews1 follower
March 25, 2023
I found such comfort & healing in this series since my Father’s death. At a time when I was immensely sad, overwhelmed, disoriented & lacked the ability to focus - this series was just enough to keep me taking one step forward. I still turn to these books after almost 6 years. 💜
Profile Image for Heidi Goehmann.
Author 13 books69 followers
December 31, 2019
This is a second read through of this small book set for me, with several years in between. I cannot think of a more concise and helpful piece of literature when grieving oneself or trying to walk beside someone grieving. Grief is so much work and these books try to take some of the mystery out of the experience without overloading a brain already overloaded with mourning. The author is insightful, while the text has bite size chunks, and a rhythm with a tiny bit of repetition I find comforting in itself.
963 reviews1 follower
September 18, 2021

A friend gave me this book. I found it very helpful. It gave me a lot to think about and basically let me know that how I felt and my actions were okay even though I was not like other people in the same circumstances. The author said that grief is normal, natural, and necessary. How we go about it is singular to our person. I especially liked his last chapter, "If God seems far away." The author has other books in this series, and I intend to read those also.
Profile Image for Mina Atef.
225 reviews25 followers
July 3, 2023
وكأن صوت بيقولي: مينا حرر حزنك وأطلقه!
أفتكر وقت مرور تجارب عليَّا أني احتفظت بحزني لنفسي وكنت دائمًا بمنع أي إشارة تيجي من بعيد تحاول بس تفتح الباب للحزن أنه ينطلق، لكن هل ده خلاني عديت المراحل دي بسلام..اطلاقًا.
أعتقد أن أغلب البشر بيعملوا كدة وأغلبهم بيداري حزنه بأشكال عدة ولأسباب كثيرة جدًا متتعدش.
الكتاب الصغير ده هيخاطبك بأنك تحزن في كل مرة تخسر حاجة عزيزة عليك، خرج حزنك بأي شكل يخفف عنك، وسيبك من أي كليشيهات مرسومة لطبيعة الشخص الحزين.
الرجالة بتعيط وبتحزن ومبتتقارنش أبدًا بحزن أقاربهم اللي الله بص متماسكين ازاي!
هوّن على نفسك يا صديقي.
أفتكر دائمًا السؤال ده:
إيه اسوأ نوع حزن في الدنيا؟
مش فقدان أم، ولا خسارة زوجة، ولا موت ابن..لكن اسوأ نوع حزن هو حزنك أنت الخاص، واسوأ ألم هو ألمك أنت.
Profile Image for Victoria Smith.
16 reviews
April 1, 2025
A patient recommended this book to me and let me borrow it! I liked how Haugk talked about the implications of grief and how it is normal, natural, and necessary. This is true even for Christians who set their hope in Christ. The reason why I rated this 3 stars is that it didn’t point at all to the cross nor to our hope in Christ. I can appreciate the points made on self care, however, I think this can leave us in a rut if we don’t rehearse the truths of the Gospel of Christ defeating sin and death and that He is ruling and reigning in heaven!

Overall, this book was very helpful to ask better questions and care more about the people around me and the grief they may be going through.
51 reviews2 followers
August 14, 2023
One of my professors told me about this set of books that help people process through grief and I picked them up. This is 1 of 4 books that I’m going to read to help educate me better on grieving. Some gems I picked up were: Grief is normal, natural, and necessary. Being honest about how you feel is a sign of true strength. Don’t put on a happy face because you think it’s expected. Grief denied is grief unhealed. Some of these were from different authors but all super good. Looking forward to reading the others and having better tools to help people.
25 reviews
May 3, 2025
I read this 4-book set after my Dad passed away in 2015. I'm reading them again after my Mom's passing in February. The books are written by a pastor and clinical psychologist. There are 12 chapters in each book, but since the books are only 40 pages long, each chapter is short. This makes it easier to pick up the book, read a chapter, and take time to grieve and reflect on one's loss. After losing a loved one, I encourage everyone to keep reading your Bible and to read at least one book on grief and grieving. It doesn't have to be this book, but this book would be a good choice.
714 reviews
June 20, 2020
This is very short and quick, but I picked it up only occasionally and mulled over my own grief in between. Simple, straightforward, cut & dried; also a very quick read, one sitting would do it if the reader chose to do it that way. Author is the founder of the massive (possibly global) Stephen Ministries, which offers support not only for grief, care-giving, and cancer, but also for leadership, assertiveness, spiritual growth & spiritual gifts, and crisis care.
Profile Image for Kim.
109 reviews5 followers
January 1, 2018
The author does a nice job easing one into concepts associated with grief, yet without plunging a newly grieving reader into overwhelming feelings. The pull quotes and sidebars struck a nice balance between religious (Bible verses) and more general inspirational quotes. I look forward to subsequent books in Haugk's series.
Profile Image for Rose Miller.
8 reviews4 followers
January 9, 2019
I send the series to family and friends because grieving is so necessary for emotional, spiritual, physical health and validates/provides grieving insights through a period of 11 months. Good one to re-read as needed since we all grieve differently and heal in different ways. It’s a tangible way to walk with a grieving person in their journey of grief.
Profile Image for Shawn.
227 reviews5 followers
May 28, 2023
I’m so happy that I found this little gem. Life has been hard for me these last two years. Knowing that what I’m feeling is normal and nothing is mentally wrong with me. I’ve never experienced grief like I have now. Not a good place to be but I know in time I will be ok. I know that God will help me get through this a little each day.
Profile Image for BookWoman_KZ.
371 reviews1 follower
November 28, 2023
I received this book as a gift from our church after the passing of my dear sister. 💔 This is the first of 4 books, I believe, that I will receive over the next year. This book was just what I needed. I felt like I was having a conversation with someone who knew exactly what I was going through.
I also appreciated that this was a very small “pamphlet style” book with just 35 pages or so.
Profile Image for Beckie Farrant.
138 reviews
June 6, 2024
I got this sent to me by my church after I lost my mom in March. It is a pretty basic and easy to read book. But it helped me see some of my experiences are normal and to trust the process. It is a great little book to give someone who has experienced loss. My church will send me 3 more of these books in the series over the year. I am looking forward to reading them.
31 reviews
November 5, 2019
AllI can say right now is this was a beginning for me. My son died four months ago and someone gave me this book recently. I have read it and some things really hit home. I’m going to reread it and hopefully be able to give a better review.
719 reviews
June 17, 2020
Book one of a series on Journeying through Grief. It is written to help those who have experienced a loss of someone very dear to them. It is also a great read to understanding the grieving process and to remind us that we all have our own way of grieving.
Profile Image for Becky.
423 reviews2 followers
December 19, 2020
This is a small 41 page booklet in easy to read print that is perfect as an intro into understanding grief. It was given to me by the minister at our church and is part of a 4 book series. I look forward to the rest of the series.
Profile Image for Vickie.
458 reviews6 followers
March 6, 2021
It is ok to grieve and everyone does it differently.... even if you yourself have not suffered from a loss, this may helpful or reaffirm how to help some one going thought a loss. There is never a comparison for loss as the greatest loss is the one you are going through.
Profile Image for Tori Horstmann.
13 reviews
January 9, 2022
This book made me realize some things about my grief that I didn’t think about before. I was very emotional after reading it and it helped me accept my loss and that it’s part of my life and reality now. Highly recommend to anyone who has lost a loved one.
Profile Image for Dalene W..
320 reviews13 followers
October 25, 2023
We received this book from our pastor after our son passed away. It has brough much needed comfort to us. It gave us peace to know that what we are feeling is ok and that grieving is a natural way to react to death.
Profile Image for Dennis Maney.
16 reviews
June 9, 2017
This book helped me admit some of the things I was doing and helped me to understand why other people act the way they do.
Profile Image for RM.
416 reviews1 follower
December 31, 2017
Recommendation from my aunt. Pleasantly surprised. I should have read this earlier in my grieving, but very accurate description of my experience. I like that it's concise.
Profile Image for Mira Evans.
7 reviews1 follower
April 4, 2020
This book was given to me after the death of my 1 year old grandson. This book helped me to see that I am grieving in the way that is normal for me.
698 reviews5 followers
January 24, 2021
Excellent summary of the effects of grief, complete with anecdotes and a list of myths about grief.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 52 reviews

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