Hope Heals

A True Story of Overwhelming Loss and an Overcoming Love

By: Katherine Wolf, Jay Wolf, Joni Eareckson Tada - foreword

Narrated by: Katherine Wolf, Jay Wolf

When all seems lost, where can hope be found?

Katherine and Jay married right after college and sought adventure far from home in Los Angeles, CA. As they pursued their dreams - she as a model and he as a lawyer - they planted their lives in the city and in their church community. Their son, James, came along unexpectedly in the fall of 2007, and just six months later, everything changed in a moment for this young family.

On April 21, 2008, as James slept in the other room, Katherine collapsed, suffering a massive brain stem stroke without warning. Miraculously, Jay came home in time and called for help. Katherine was immediately rushed into micro-brain surgery, though her chance of survival was slim. As the sun rose the next morning, the surgeon proclaimed that Katherine had survived the removal of part of her brain, though her future recovery was completely uncertain. Yet in that moment, there was a spark of hope. Through 40 days on life support in the ICU and nearly two years in full-time brain rehab, that spark of hope was fanned into flame.

Defying every prognosis with grit and grace, Katherine and Jay, side by side, struggled to regain a life for Katherine as she relearned to talk and eat and walk. Returning home with a severely disabled body but a completely renewed purpose, they committed to celebrate this gift of a second chance by embracing life fully, even though that life looked very different than they could have ever imagined. In the midst of continuing hardships and struggles, both in body and mind, Katherine and Jay found what we all long to find...hope, hope that heals the most broken place, our souls.

An excruciating yet beautiful road to recovery has led the Wolf family to their new normal, in which almost every moment of life is marked with the scars of that fateful April day in 2008. Now, eight years later, Katherine and Jay are stewarding their story of suffering, restoration, and Christ-centered hope in this broken world through their ministry Hope Heals.

©2016 Katherine Wolf and Jay Wolf (P)2021 Zondervan

Beautiful story

Absolutely loved this story of hope and healing. Plan to share with others who need this kind of message of hope. Thank you, Katherine and Jay.

So good

Beautiful things can come out of devastation. Trusting in the Lord is the secret to seeing such beauty.

So good

Absolutely love this book!! So good, so raw, so inspiring & encouraging!! Life is hard. Don’t give up hope. Thank you for sharing your story!!

Best book on suffering and living in light of hope I’ve ever read !

I’ve read so many books on suffering and I am truly blessed by its Gospel lens! So many lines were riveting but this one at the very end got me. “We knew that if we removed the depth of our sufferings we would remove the power of our hope”

Inspiring

It’s hard to find the words but the strength of Katherine and her family and the faithfulness of God through all of this is so amazing. What an eye opener to the trials that life brings but a reminder to trust in God and that he will make everything beautiful that is broken.

Wise and Inspiring

Powerful story of trusting God, overcoming challenges, and a marriage that stood strong in many, many storms! I loved how it was read by the authors. This made listening to the book especially powerful!

confident faith

I appreciate it the wife's reading part of it!! I am a TBI survivor. it gave me hope

Oh, How I Treasure This Story!

I’ve read this book four times, and now I’ve listened to it, too. Whether I read it or listen to it, the Wolf’s story reaches deep into my heart. The suffering they endure when Katherine has a stroke while still in her twenties is almost unthinkable. Their retelling of what happened is done with beautiful prose that shines the light on God’s goodness. I can’t recommend this book enough!!

beautiful masterpiece

loved this story of Jay and Katherine. beautiful written. loved the side bars and the humor woven throughout their story. I loved hearing about Katherine's struggles and over watching joy and unwaivering faith through it all

A lot...her story.

I am disabled too due a brain injury, and her story is very similar to mine AND I live in Culver City. Great book, especially because I am unable to read but can listen/understand so I use Audible. Her book is very motivating, thx for having it.