If you’ve lived long enough, you know from experience that some past events or circumstances that didn’t make sense at the time had a purpose after all and brought about some good. We see a clear example of this in the story of Joseph in the book of Genesis (see Gen. 37-47). Throughout the hardships and unfair treatment Joseph experienced, God was preparing him to save his family and the people of Egypt from the upcoming famine.

What do you do when you’ve lost your job, home, spouse, or even a child—in a matter of minutes—due to a natural disaster, illness, crime, accident, malice, or negligence? When my child died suddenly in a skiing accident over twelve years ago, my family faced the overwhelming despair of earth-shattering loss with no warning. Even though it seems impossible to do when facing a tragedy, here are five good things to remember in times of great loss:

1. Believers will see their saved loved ones again.

Upon entering the room where my son’s body lay, my first thought was of wanting to pull him off the table and take his place. My second thought was the hope that he was in heaven with Jesus. This is the great hope Christians have when fellow believers die—that the separation is only temporary, and they will be reunited one day with their beloved brothers and sisters in Christ who are now with their Lord (2 Sam. 12:23; 1 Thess. 4:13-18). Make the most of the time you have to teach your children and loved ones about salvation in Christ, since you don’t know how long you will be with each other on this earth.

2. It’s not just “stuff”—it’s okay to grieve material losses.

A house my family used to lived in burned to the ground in the recent devastating fires in Santa Rosa, California. When I saw the ashes of what remained in a satellite image, I burst into tears, even though I hadn’t lived there for over twenty-five years.

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