Announcing My Book on Miscarriage
Jessalyn Hutto
About this time last year, I began a very special project with Cruciform Press that I have yet to make public. In fact, aside from some close friends and family, there are few people who know that I've spent every free moment I could muster over the past year writing a book. The time has come, however, to reveal my little secret and I couldn't be more excited to share it with you!
In the first week of March, a book I've written on the topic of miscarriage called Inheritance of Tears: Trusting the Lord of Life When Death Visits the Womb will be published!
As many of you know, I have experienced two heartbreaking miscarriages. The first was at eight weeks into a pregnancy and the second was a late miscarriage at seventeen weeks. As I walked through these horrific trials, two things became increasingly clear to me:
- Miscarriages are not rare. It is estimated that up to 25% of clinically recognized pregnancies end in miscarriage. This statistic is utterly staggering, and yet I have seen it play out in my own life and in the lives of my friends. Unfortunately, due to the intimate nature of this type of loss, miscarriages are rarely publicized, and as a result, couples are often left to grieve in unnoticed isolation. In churches everywhere, mothers and fathers are silently mourning the deaths of their precious babies. These couples desperately need their church bodies to recognize their pain and to come alongside them in their grief. They need good, gospel-focused counsel from their pastors and friends as they experience this terrible manifestation of the fall. All too often their loss is invisible to the people who are meant to bear them up in their grief.
- The biblical resources available to those who experience miscarriage are virtually nonexistent. When a woman's baby dies within her, she is understandably plagued with questions. Many of these questions are medical in nature, but many of them--and perhaps the most important questions she has--are spiritual. Why did God let my baby die? Is God punishing me? What good could come possibly from this? How can I find peace and hope in the midst of such anguish? Where is my baby now? Questions like these are undeniably difficult to answer, but they warrant a thoughtful, biblical response. They shouldn't be pushed aside in an effort to encourage a woman to "get over" her loss. The Word of God is more than adequate to answer these questions and provide a sure hope for the woman whose womb has been visited by death. These women don't need empty platitudes and frivolous advice when their babies die, they need God and his Word! After all, it is only by drawing near to our good and loving God in the midst of suffering that women will be able to find the true peace and joy that their suffering souls crave. The church is in desperate need of a sensitive and theologically robust resource that will address the unique trial of miscarriage. The women who miscarry need it, the fathers who are stripped of their unborn children need it, and their church family needs it in order to effectively minister to them in their time of grief.
These two observations, combined with my own personal experience, left me with a deep longing to write a book specifically aimed toward those who suffer from the sorrow of miscarriage. When Cruciform suggested I begin working on such a book for them, I understandably jumped at the opportunity!
Inheritance of Tears is for grieving mothers, fathers, and those who seek to better understand how they can minister to parents who've lost children to miscarriage. It is a short book (under 100 pages) that is packed with scripture specifically addressing the unique issues brought to light when a baby dies in the womb. In its pages I deal honestly and sensitively with the painful trial of miscarriage, encouraging those who are suffering to find hope in the only one who can provide it: our death-conquering savior, Jesus Christ. The comfort I offer to those who read Inheritance of Tears doesn't consist of emotional fluff or empty platitudes or Christian clichés, but rather, the the comfort I offer is bound up in the powerful, soul-satisfying truths of the gospel. Here are some of the things people who've read the book are saying so far:
"This book is equally important for those who have suffered miscarriage and those who have not. Rarely is the topic of miscarriage addressed with such candor and depth. Deeply personal and brave, “Inheritance of Tears” unveils a picture of miscarriage drawn from first-hand experience and attentive consideration of Scripture. Jessalyn invites us to ask the hard questions, to enter into the suffering of our sisters, to remember the goodness of God even in the midst of unspeakable loss. May her words minister to many." -Jen Wilkin, Author of Women of the Word
"Miscarriage places women in a secret club that nobody wants to join, but many found themselves in. Because of the nature of the loss many women find themselves grasping for hope in the overwhelming days of grief that follow their loss. I have twice been one such woman, and Jessalyn Hutto has written the book that I wish I had as I walked through the pain of our miscarriages. Filled with Scripture, empathy, and rock solid hope that God is a good and all loving Father, this is a book that will be a healing balm to grieving women in your local church." -Courtney Reissig, wife, mom, author of The Accidental Feminist: Restoring Our Delight in God's Good Design (Crossway)
"This is a needed resource for those struggling to know God in the midst of their suffering. Without a solid theological framework, God's role in our suffering is hard to navigate. Jessalyn gives the needed resources to know in truth the God of All Comfort, for only from that foundation can we receive His deep rest in the midst of pain." -Wendy Alsup, Author of Practical Theology for Women: How Knowing God Makes a Difference in Our Daily Lives
"Jessalyn Hutto invites you to experience God’s goodness in the midst of your suffering. Having walked through the sorrow of miscarriage, my heart resonates with Jessalyn’s bittersweet journey. Jessalyn doesn’t back away from the tough questions that loss brings, but offers biblical counsel for the hurting as one who understands their pain. Inheritance of Tears: Trusting the Lord of Life When Death Visits The Womb is a personal word of truth and comfort that I highly recommend. -Kimberly Wagner, author of Fierce Women
I will be sharing more about Inheritance of Tears in the next few weeks, but for now I want to take the opportunity to share how you can be involved in this book's launch.
Inheritance of Tears Book Launch Team
My earnest prayer is that the biblical truths I share in Inheritance of Tears will help those who are mourning the loss of their precious children by pointing them to our good and loving Savior in the midst of their pain, but I need your help getting it into their hands. In order to get the word out to our pastors, church members, and grieving parents about this new resource I'm putting together a book launch team and I would be honored if you would participate. I need bloggers to review Inheritance of Tears and host giveaways. I need those who don't blog, but are active on social media sites like Facebook and Twitter to share about the book with their friends. Above all, I need friends who will commit to praying for this work, asking our Heavenly Father to bless it and get it into the hands of the many, many suffering mothers and fathers who need it.
If you are interested in being a part of this book launch, please click on the link below. You will be taken to a Google Form where you can indicate how you can best help. After you have submitted the form, I will get back to you with the specific information you will need. Thank you in advance!
Thank you for your support! The Google form is now closed. If you are interested in reviewing Inheritance of Tears, please use this form to contact me. I would be honored to hear from you!
I would like to close this post by thanking our gracious God for allowing me the privilege of writing this book. He truly is the God of all comfort and I am so grateful that has allowed me to share the comfort I have received from him in my times of suffering with those who are called to walk through similar trials. As Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians:
“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.”
You can read more about Inheritance of Tears and preorder a copy here.