To all of my dear sisters in Christ who are facing this Thanksgiving without the child they were expecting earlier in the year:

You don’t have to pretend to be happy today.

You don’t have to disguise the pain.

You don’t have to meet your family’s expectations.

You don’t have to have a ready answer.

You don’t have to hold your cousin’s new baby.

You don’t even have to attend the annual festivities.

Or, you can.

Just remember this: Christ makes the dead alive. Christ makes all things new. Christ forgives your sins. Christ says, “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28).

Christ bears your grief and pain this Thanksgiving and the day after that and the day after that. You can rest in Him.