I opened the memory box and pulled out a small silver lapel pin, the exact size and shape of a ten-week unborn baby’s feet. Caressing the ten tiny toes, I remembered the loss of my first pregnancy and those who said I was “lucky” I wasn’t “that far along.” I grieved, knowing that my baby’s feet were as real as the heart that once beat inside my womb. I thanked God for freeing me from depression and using our story to comfort others who were grieving after losing a child. More than two decades after my miscarriage, I named my first child Kai, which in some languages means “rejoice.” Though I still ache from our loss, I thank God for healing my heart and using our story to help others.

The writer of Psalm 107 rejoiced in God’s established character and sang: “Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever” (v. 1). He urged “the redeemed of the Lord” to “tell their story” (vv. 2–3), to “give thanks to the Lord for his unfailing love and his wonderful deeds for mankind” (v. 8). He offered hope with a promise that God alone “satisfies the thirsty and fills the hungry with good things” (v. 9).

No one can escape grief or affliction, even those who have been redeemed through Christ’s sacrifice on the cross. We can, however, experience God’s mercy as He uses our stories to point others to His redeeming love.