Hope in the Midst of Great Pain

Lindsey Dennis shares story of incredible loss to

reveal a hope greater than our dreams

Lindsey R. Dennis and her husband, Kevin, had only been married a few months when they found out they were pregnant. Excited and hopeful about the new life she was carrying and the future of their family, they were devastated to learn at their 20-week ultrasound that the baby would not live due to a fatal diagnosis. They would relive their grief again as they buried their second daughter fourteen months after their first. In Buried Dreams: From Devastating Lost to Unimaginable Hope (Abingdon Press), Dennis shares not only her story of grief and loss, but how to live out a hope that is greater than our dreams.

Through the crushing of their hopes and dreams, the Dennises came to know the kind of resurrection hope that can rise from the grave. This experience of infant loss revealed how sorrow and suffering are instruments in the hands of God to forge a greater joy and hope than one can ever know. This kind of joy can only be discovered by walking through the deep pain of burying precious dreams.

Even though they knew they would have to say goodbye to their daughters who only lived a few hours after their respective births, Lindsey and Kevin chose to celebrate both lives alongside their church community. She started a blog shortly after learning of baby Sophia’s diagnosis to keep friends and family informed of what was going on. Within a week, the blog had thousands of views, and it grew from there. People around the country and the world shared in praying for and celebrating each week the girls lived in the womb.

“I talk to many people who are struggling with how to walk through the disappointment that has unfolded in their lives, the buried dreams, the loss and pain, and I wanted them to know how hope can rise from even the darkest seasons,” explains Dennis. “I want others to know this hope and how to persevere in the midst of great pain. I wanted to tell the story of God’s worthiness and faithfulness to us during deep suffering.”

Buried Dreams offers an uplifting perspective, sharing how devastating loss of personal dreams can give way to unimaginable hope and how death can give way to life. Framing her own story of staggering loss and soaring hope with biblical perspective, Dennis highlights that we can never plan for the unexpected turns of this life that sometimes lead to great personal suffering, but we can reach for the One who is there with us in the loss.

“This book is both for women who are walking a path similar to mine, but more broadly any woman who has had to bury a dream,” Dennis shares. “That dream may quite literally be in the death of a loved one, or it could be the loss of a marriage, career or any hope for the future. We live in a culture that says, ‘Keep dreams alive, don’t stop dreaming,’ but the reality is that some of our dreams do die, so what are we to do when that happens? How do we ultimately hope for something greater than temporal dreams?”

There are three things Dennis hopes readers will take away from Buried Dreams and her story:

·         A greater view and understanding of God,

·         To see how God is at work in their own stories, weaving His hope in often unexpected ways,

·         To learn how to press into their own seasons of waiting and suffering with a posture towards God and not away from Him. These seasons are fertile soil for hope to grow.

There is joy to be found in Dennis’ story. Two years ago, their son Jaden, joined their family through adoption. On July 2, 2018, Dennis gave birth to a healthy baby girl.

About the author

Lindsey R. Dennis has worked with Cru for more than 15 years. She has served in international locations, as well as universities in the States, and takes great joy in getting to invest her life in students from a variety of cultures and backgrounds. 

Dennis also writes and speaks on what God has done to bring hope and healing in her life through the life and death of her first two daughters. Within a few weeks of learning the news of her first daughters’ diagnosis, she began to blog about her unfolding story of hope and loss. Within the first week she had thousands of views and within two years, she had 1.5 million pageviews and 400,000 unique visitors. Dennis loves to share with others what it looks like to know God in the midst of suffering and how to trust Him with the pen of their stories. In addition to her own blog, she is also a contributing writer for www.hopemommies.com and www.stillstandingmag.com.

She lives in Orlando, Florida with her husband, Kevin. They have 4 children, Sophie and Dasah who now live with Jesus, and Jaden and Briella now in their arms.

You can follow more of Lindsey Dennis’ journey and writings on her blog,

www.vaporandmist.com. She can also be found on Facebook (Vapor and Mist), Twitter (@lindseyrenae) and Instagram (@lindseydennis_).