Pain as the Birthplace of Blessings: Finding Hope Through Grief with Hadassah Treu

Send me a text and let me know your thoughts!What if your pain had a purpose? Jan welcomes Hadassah Treu, a Christian author and speaker from Bulgaria, for an honest and hope-filled conversation about grief, depression, and the surprising blessings that can be born from our hardest seasons. Hadassah shares how she found Jesus in communist Bulgaria, survived multiple battles with depression, lost her husband suddenly in 2020, and emerged with a message: suffering surrendered to God is never wasted. She also walks through key scriptures in Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Job that carried her through the darkest nights. If you're in the middle of loss — or wondering what God is doing in your pain — this episode is for you.FIND HADASSAH TREU:Her book: Draw Near: How Painful Experiences Become the Birthplace for Blessingshttps://www.facebook.com/onthewaybg/https://www.instagram.com/hadassahtreu/https://www.pinterest.at/onthewaybg/https://medium.com/@hadassah.treu https://subscribepage.io/joinmycommunity 00:00 Intro — Pain is not in vain00:30 Welcome & introducing Hadassah Troy from Bulgaria01:35 Hadassah's background — Bulgaria, Austria, and writing ministry02:24 Finding Jesus in communist Bulgaria — her first encounter with depression04:40 Why she reached out to God in a country where religion was forbidden05:35 Praying "the way, the truth, and the life" before ever reading John 14:606:38 The power of generational prayer — her grandmother's hidden faith07:57 Second and third encounters with depression — infertility and loss09:49 Grief after her husband's sudden death in 2020 — uncharted territory11:18 Painful experiences as the birthplace of blessings — her 2024 book13:33 The roadmap: 13 painful experiences, their losses and spiritual gains15:46 Grief is universal — job loss, infertility, identity, and more16:27 Jesus — the man of sorrows and ultimate grief expert16:40 Scriptures that carried Hadassah through grief (Isaiah, Jeremiah, Job)20:29 How Hadassah prays — journaling, personalized psalms, and lament23:25 God as husband, provider, and protector after loss24:55 "But God" moments — finding wisdom and provision through grief25:37 Final takeaways and where to find Hadassah. Featured on over 70 faith-based platforms and podcasts like Her View from Home, The Upper Room, (In)courage, Living by Design, Proverbs 31 Ministries, COMPEL Pro Blog, she is a hope-bringing speaker and writer at onthewaybg.com, a Top 100 Faith Blog ranked by Feedspot in 2025 and 2026. Hadassah is a professional member of the Advanced Writers and Speakers Association (AWSA) and COMPEL Pro Training member, leader, and contributor.https://uppbeat.io/t/aaron-paul-low/essence-of-lightLicense code: ZML1ML0ELF5JH4VJWelcome to Just Talkin' About Jesus.I'm Jan Johnson, a seasoned believer who loves relationships and, you know, just talkin' about Jesus.Here you will find testimonies of those who God has changed through his grace.Stories of feeling unworthy because of being sex trafficked, or of radical redemption of a woman who grew up with abuse, neglect, abandonment and drugs. A story of an abortion survivor. This and more. Lean in now. Consider subscribing to this podcast, YouTube and Substack- all with the same name: Just Talkin' About Jesus!https://www.youtube.com/@JustTalkinAboutJesushttps://jan-johnson.com/https://justtalkingaboutjesus.com/https://janjohnsonauthor.substack.com/https://www.youtube.com/@JustTalkinAboutJesusThanks for listening!If you have a story to tell, check out the form on my website- justtalkingaboutjesus.com.I'd love to connect with you!No, really.... hit me up!