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When Christmas Hurts: A Lifeline for Those in Crisis

When Christmas Hurts: A Lifeline for Those in Crisis

Last updated on: December 2, 2025 at 8:12 am by Frank Viola

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When Christmas Hurts: A Lifeline for Those in Crisis 2025-12-02T08:12:58-04:00 Frank Viola

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

I appreciate all the emails testifying how the recent conference messages on restoration that dropped two weeks ago so many of you ablaze. Most Christians who are impacted by a book, an article, a podcast, or a spoken message will never tell the author/speaker, so it’s always encouraging to receive such testimonials. God uses every one of them.

One of my publishers – Tyndale – informed me that sales for my book Hang On, Let Go: What to Do When Your Dreams Are Shattered and Life Is Falling Apart may not be enough to keep the book in print.

I was horrified when I heard this because the book has saved countless lives. Some from suicide, others from depression and immeasurable pain. I continue to receive such reports from readers.

I hope you will read this article that the publisher helped me write because it may help you, a friend, or a loved one this holiday season. The book is on sale at a 65% discount for a limited time through the link in the article. (Thanks, Tyndale.)

The holidays are when many Christians feel the most acute pain, hence, why we’re featuring this article today. Here it is.

The Silent Suffering of the Season

The twinkling lights feel harsh. The cheerful carols sound hollow. While the world celebrates around you, you’re drowning in a crisis that makes every “Merry Christmas” feel like salt in a wound.

If this is your reality this Christmas season, you’re not alone—and more importantly, you’re not forgotten.

Christmas is supposed to be the most wonderful time of the year, but for millions, it’s the most painful. Behind the festive facades, people are grappling with:

Relational devastation that leaves hearts shattered: family rifts that tear apart Christmas traditions, the empty chair where a loved one used to sit, or the crushing loneliness of spending another Christmas alone.

Health crises that cast shadows over every celebration: cancer diagnoses that change everything, chronic pain that steals joy, mental health struggles that make getting through each day feel impossible, or watching someone you love battle an illness you cannot fix.

Financial collapse that strips away not just presents under the tree, but dignity, security, and hope: job losses right before the holidays, medical bills that pile up like unwanted gifts, homes lost, dreams deferred, and the shame of not being able to provide.

The cultural pressure to be merry makes the pain even more acute. When everyone else seems to be celebrating, your crisis feels magnified, your grief more isolating, your struggle more shameful.

A Voice in the Wilderness

My book, Hang On, Let Go: What to Do When Your Dreams Are Shattered and Life Is Falling Apart, doesn’t offer shallow platitudes or quick fixes. Nor does it offer the simplistic advice that many Christians give when the sky is falling in someone’s life, which is: “Just pray and read your Bible more.”

Instead, the book provides what countless readers describe as a “lifeline thrown into the depths of their darkest moments.” This isn’t another feel-good book that minimizes real pain—it’s a honest, biblically-grounded, highly practical guide through the valley of crisis. What makes the book unique is not just its deep spiritual insights, but also that it is highly practical.

The book explains how to hang on to God and His promises through your storm, while letting go of the outcome in order to experience the peace of Christ.

I understand that some of life’s storms don’t just pass quickly; they fundamentally alter the landscape of our lives. Some crises require more than positive thinking—they demand a profound shift in how we hold onto hope when everything familiar is slipping away.

The book’s revolutionary approach lies in its paradoxical wisdom: sometimes healing and deliverance require both hanging on to what matters most and letting go of what we think we need. It’s about finding God’s presence, not despite the crisis, but within it.

More Than Survival—Transformation

Readers don’t just survive their crises after encountering this book; they discover something unexpected: crisis can become a doorway to a deeper, more authentic relationship with God and a more meaningful life than they ever thought possible.

The testimonies of thousands of readers are powerful. They speak of:

Depression lifted when medication alone couldn’t help
Financial ruin transformed into unexpected freedom
Terminal diagnoses met with inexplicable peace
Suicidal thoughts replaced with reasons to live
Relationships saved from the brink of permanently ending
Starting over strong after devastating loss

This Christmas, while others unwrap material gifts, you could unwrap a different kind of present—the gift of divine perspective and aid that transforms suffering into strength, crisis into calling, and pain into purpose.

A Gift That Could Save a Life

Perhaps you’re reading this and thinking of someone you love who’s drowning.

Maybe it’s a family member who’s barely holding on, a friend whose smile doesn’t reach their eyes anymore, or a coworker who’s carrying burdens too heavy for the season.

Maybe it’s you.

My book Hang On, Let Go could be the most important gift you give this year. Not because it promises easy answers, but because it offers something more valuable: uncommon wisdom and hope that’s been tested in the fires of real human suffering and proven to be triumphant.

Your Next Step

This Christmas, don’t let another person suffer in silence. Don’t let another day pass wondering if there’s really hope on the other side of your crisis.

Get your copy of Hang On, Let Go today at a 65% discount. Give it to yourself as an act of self-care and faith. Give it to someone you love as the most meaningful present they could receive. Give it to someone whose name just came to mind as you read these words.

Because sometimes the most beautiful gift isn’t wrapped in paper and ribbons. It’s wrapped in hope, delivered exactly when it’s needed most. Here are two reviews:

“An astonishing and insightful field guide for Christians who are enduring a severe trial or crisis. Viola writes with compassion, navigating the reader through their own personal storm. The writing style is compelling and clear, even poetic and humorous. Make no mistake, this isn’t your typical book about suffering. It’s a practical manual. It’s not memoir either. The author keeps the focus on the struggles of the reader and the God who can deliver. The wisdom conveyed and the emotional connection the author makes with readers as he describes his feelings, thoughts, and struggles during his own trials lends tremendous credibility to the message. This book is a lifesaver for anyone who is trying to weather a storm.”

– Christian Book Reviews

“Hang On, Let God: What to Do When Your Dreams are Shattered and Life is Falling Apart by Frank Viola is astonishingly good. The book is in another league altogether! The wisdom, spiritual application, and insight is breathtaking. If you are frustrated about how life is treating you, this will be balm to your soul and strengthen your mind.”

– Gary Thomas, bestselling author and speaker

The book is also available on Amazon and other online bookstores.

Yours in His unfailing grace,

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