Jay Wolf Archives

Author, speaker, and stroke survivor Katherine Wolf shares how to find God in darkness and suffering.

Katherine Wolf

In April 2008, 26-years-old Katherine Wolf suddenly experienced a massive brain stem stroke which led to a brain bleed. The incident that almost took her life happened just six months after she gave birth to her first child, James.

The former beauty queen miraculously survived after 16 hours of surgery, however, she was left unable to walk, talk or swallow. She was also left with severe double vision, right ear deafness, and right-side facial paralysis.

Finding God in the midst of tragedy

Despite her circumstances, Katherine, together with her husband Jay, stood up to seek God amidst the tragedy.

“I had to learn how to find God in the midst of it,” Katherine said in an interview. “I learned that God’s goodness was not attached to my earthly circumstances, and God being good was not based on anything going on in the physical world. The cross put everything in perspective.”

Hope Heals

Together, they founded Hope Heals, a nonprofit organization that serves those with disabilities. The couple is also internationally-recognized communicators and advocates for those who are differently-abled.

“Suffering well begins with not being so scared of the hard stories and really wrestling with the sad and bittersweet nature of life and not being afraid to talk about that and again find God in the midst of it,” Jay said. “We don’t need to be afraid of suffering because as believers, we can be confident that struggles will give us depth and richness to our experiences with God and with one another.”

The couple’s story is what we all need to hear about because we all faced troubles and difficulties at some point in our lives. What matters the most is is how we pull through from the darkness.

“What happens to you is less important than how you re-narrate it. How you think about, how you find God in the midst of it. Are you a victim, or are you an overcomer?”