The last few months have been anything but easy for Hollywood mogul Roma Downey who is sharing how she has been remaining hopeful in times of grief.
Downey, the Founder of LightWorkers who produced films and series like “The Bible,” “Son of God,” and “Ben-Hur,” spoke about how much she has struggled with the recent wildfires in California that ravished communities in the state last November.
As if that was not enough to deal with, Downey had to deal with the death of her brother this fall.
“As we near the end of 2018, I wanted to send you each love and gratefulness for sharing your light and kindness with us throughout this year. I also can’t help but reflect upon the last 12 months and to be honest sometimes it felt as though the valleys were deeper than the mountains were tall,” she wrote in a blog posted on Faith Wire. “Perhaps some of you can relate? For me, this year has been challenging, filled with personal heartache and loss as well as truly traumatic events in our community.”
She went on to detail some of the heartbreaking events that she has had to endure recently.
“Losing my brother this fall broke my heart, and I still feel waves of grief wash over me even as I write. Then several weeks ago, we got an urgent call to evacuate our home due to rapidly approaching, out-of-control wildfires,” the Irish born Hollywood producer and author wrote. “After weeks of evacuation, uncertainty and anxiety, we are finally back in our home. We are more fortunate than many families here in our hometown of Malibu as at least we have a home to return to. For this, we are truly grateful and holding tight to God’s unwavering goodness, even though the grief feels too great at times.”
When preparing to celebrate Christmas and the new year, Downey admitted to having bittersweet feelings while dealing with these tragic events. Still, she isn’t letting her feelings of grief stop her from having a grateful heart.
“So, today I am counting my blessings afresh and thanking God for every single one of them. Even the pain,” she wrote. “For in the pain I am given another opportunity to grieve in the safest hands; the hands that uphold me, will never disappoint and from which all blessings have and will forevermore come.”
Despite some of the recent painful moments that she has experienced, Downey wants to share a message of hope and love that will inspire others to do the same.
“Through my loss and through my tragedies, hear my testimony—hope was born into this world, and hope is here to stay,” she wrote. “Commit yourself to love, honor your neighbors through generosity, serve one another with joyful hearts and be a shining light in this world so that all may know the hope you hold in your heart through your faith.”
(Photo: Lars Niki/Getty Images)