Author and caregiver Jess Ronne joins me to share her story and her new book, Caregiving with Grit and Grace. As the mother of a son with profound disabilities and the young wife who walked through her husband’s brain cancer, Jess has lived the struggles many caregivers face but few talk about. Together, we discuss the loneliness of caregiving, special needs parenting, the reality of grief and anger, and the hope that comes through faith in Christ.

This conversation is for anyone navigating the challenges of family caregiving, special needs, or long-term illness — offering encouragement, honesty, and spiritual strength for the journey.

Mike Tyson is famous for saying, “Everybody has a plan until they get punched in the nose.”

When suffering punches us in the nose, our plans - and clichés - don’t hold. In this episode of Truth Talk Live, I explore why “drive-by ministry” fails and why true comfort begins with seeing people in their pain—just as Christ sees us.

You’ll hear:

• My reflections from the ICU after Gracie’s 98th surgery.

• The danger of empty phrases like “God has a plan” or “just trust Jesus.”

• A listener in tears, struggling to accept God’s forgiveness.

• A reminder from Scripture: not why, but who.

Gracie also sings Breathe on Me, Breath of God a cappella—an anchor of hope in moments when words fail.

If you’ve ever wondered what to say (or not say) when someone is in trauma, this episode points to solid ground in Christ.

ORDER THE NEW BOOK …TODAY!

In this week’s episode of Hope for the Caregiver, I continue my two series: Difficult Issues Caregivers Face but Don’t Want to Talk About and Hymns Every Caregiver Should Know.

I start with a memory of a pastor who once told me, “Peter, you do yourself a disservice—you make this look easier than it is.” He was right. For years I made caregiving look manageable, even while quietly drowning inside. That appearance of strength often kept others from stepping in or even knowing what to say.

Meals and casseroles are thoughtful, but they’re not enough. Caregivers need more than temporary relief—we need sustainable support. Vocational direction, financial guidance, and mentors willing to walk with us can make the difference between barely surviving and building a life that endures.

Scripture reminds us of El Roi, the God who sees. Just as He saw Hagar, Zacchaeus, and the multitudes, He also sees caregivers who mask their exhaustion. And if God sees, the church must learn to see too—not just the obvious needs, but the hidden cracks in a caregiver’s life.

I share about Gracie’s 98 surgeries, including a recent five-month stretch in the hospital, and how impossible it has been to plan a “normal” career or even a five-week calendar. Caregiving has reshaped everything in my life, and for too long I didn’t have people asking the deeper questions about what was sustainable.

Then I take you to the Caregiver Keyboard, where I introduce this week’s hymn. I not only play it, but also show how its harmonies—tension, dissonance, and resolution—mirror the emotional weight caregivers carry. The story behind the hymn ties directly into this theme: before we can encourage or rescue anyone, we first have to see them.

I close by sharing from my new book, A Caregiver’s Companion: Scriptures, Hymns, and 40 Years of Insights for Life’s Toughest Role. I wrote it to give caregivers—and the church—a vocabulary of hope. Because healthy caregivers make better caregivers.

Get this book today!

"I don't expect the President to be a theologian - but I expect theologians to be theologians." 

When former President Trump suggested that ending the war in Ukraine might “help him get to heaven,” the headlines exploded—but the church stayed silent. In this episode of Truth Talk Live (I guest-host it weekly), I challenge that silence, point to the cross of Christ, and invite callers to proclaim the gospel out loud. Nothing but the blood of Jesus can save us—nothing else.

This is not about politics. It’s about clarity. If the church won’t speak when the gospel is distorted on the world stage, then what are we even doing?

Click to get the new book today!

In this episode of Truth Talk Live ( I guest-host on Wednesdays), I started with a little laughter, but the conversation quickly turned to the deeper reality of marriage. Drawing from Scripture, from our culture, and from my own 39 years with Gracie, I shared why I believe “weddings cost money, but marriage costs everything.”

Along the way, listeners called in with raw and vulnerable stories. One man opened up about childhood trauma that still weighs heavily on his marriage. Another shared how Christ delivered him from addiction. Others reflected on decades of faithfulness in their own homes. Their honesty gave us all a reminder that marriage isn’t about ease or comfort—it’s about sacrificial love, just as Ephesians 5 commands.

This wasn’t a light episode, but it was a hopeful one. We laughed at the start, we listened to pain in the middle, and we ended with a clear picture of what covenant love really costs—and why it’s worth it.

Read the article at BLAZE MEDIA

https://www.theblaze.com/columns/opinion/weddings-cost-money-marriage-costs-everything

Check out my new book (08/20/2025)!

In this episode of Hope for the Caregiver, I celebrate 39 years of marriage to my wife, Gracie, while reflecting on the roller-coaster journey of nearly 100 surgeries, chronic pain, and a lifetime of caregiving. From dancing with Gracie at Madison Square Garden to hearing her sing hymns in an ICU hallway, I share how beauty and joy can break through even in the hardest places. As part of my Hymn of the Week series, Gracie’s powerful voice brings “Breathe on Me, Breath of God” to life—a reminder that faith, music, and love still carry caregivers through the toughest days.

In this episode of Hope for the Caregiver, I sit down with DJ and Jessica Rowland to talk about life with Huntington’s disease—and what it really means to keep living when the diagnosis is grim. Jessica was diagnosed in 2018 after a season of clumsiness, psychological symptoms, and career struggles. DJ, her husband and primary caregiver, balances running a mobile truck repair business with caring for her needs, adapting their home for safety, and bringing her along when he can. Their support network of family and friends has learned to adjust plans so Jessica can be part of them.

We talk about the “incremental grief” of watching someone you love slowly lose abilities, and how they’ve chosen to push back against fear with adventure—riding motorcycles, taking a hot-air balloon ride, and embracing experiences Jessica once avoided. Their motto says it all: “Fear does not stop death. It stops life.” DJ shares the adjustments they’ve made for her mobility, swallowing, and pain, and the way the HD community has become a vital source of encouragement despite the heartache of seeing friends decline.

Faith plays a role, too. Past experiences with their autistic son being unwelcome at church have kept them away for a while, but they hope to join a congregation after moving to a warmer climate. DJ finds comfort in the “Footprints” poem, and I encouraged them to explore the story behind It Is Well with My Soul. We closed with my caregiver song, I Can Only Hold You Now, and a reminder that the goal isn’t simply to avoid death—it’s to live fully with the time we have.

“A Caregiver’s Companion” Release Date 8/20/2025.

Click Cover For More!

Caregiving can bury you under the weight of obligation—the “I have to, I should, I must” that breeds resentment and exhaustion. I’ve lived there. But over the years, I’ve learned to trade that burden for stewardship—remembering that Gracie belongs to God, not me, and my calling is faithfulness, not fixing.

In this episode, I share how that shift in thinking changes everything—and how one short hymn, Praise God from Whom All Blessings Flow, has anchored me in the hardest moments. I tell three stories I’ll never forget:

• Gracie, moments after losing her second leg, singing the Doxology from a gurney.

• A young man in Ghana, raising newly fitted prosthetic hooks to heaven in praise.

• A congregation moved to tears when we slowed down and really listened to the words.

These moments prove it: good theology always leads to doxology. Even in the fog, we can slow down, take the next right step, and praise Him anywhere.

Get this book today!

https://a.co/d/do1lGW2

“I never really quite knew what the definition of love is… I think it comes down to tests like this.” - Jay Leno on Hope for the Caregiver

That matter-of-fact statement from Jay Leno to me on my radio program stayed with me long after the conversation ended.

In a deeply personal and unexpectedly poignant conversation, Jay opened up about caring for his beloved wife, Mavis, whose health challenges have brought him into the caregiving world. Their 45-year marriage—marked by shared laughter, mutual admiration, and now, caregiving—has entered a new chapter, and Jay is showing up daily with humor, humility, and tenderness.

From finding the absurd in shoe shopping to using flashcards of old photos to spark memories, Jay shares the little victories that keep him grounded. “Maybe it’s my imagination,” he said, “but she’s remembering things she didn’t three or four months ago.”

He spoke candidly about what caregiving has taught him about love, sacrifice, and what it means to be a man. This wasn’t late-night monologue material. This was a man facing the hard part of the vow—“for worse”—and decided to stay in the room.

And through it all, he’s still telling jokes, still hitting the road on weekends, and still looking for ways to bring joy to others—whether in a packed auditorium or caring for the woman he loves.

Jay Leno made millions laugh. But in this conversation, he’ll make you think—about love, commitment, and what it means to keep showing up.

PeterRosenberger.com

Available wherever books are sold 08/20/2025

As caregivers, we often pour out until there’s nothing left—but what happens when the one collapsing is the caregiver herself?

My longtime friend Nancy Comish joined me for a brutally honest conversation about her journey through caregiver burnout, medical overload, and physical decline. She was overmedicated, under-rested, and emotionally drowning. Her husband, Craig—who knows his way around a hospital system—raised the alarm. I echoed it later on her front porch. But Nancy made the call. She read the warnings on the prescriptions. She faced what those pills were doing to her. And then she did something most people don’t: she changed.

Nancy’s story isn’t about being rescued. It’s about rescue through resolve. With courage, humor, and a clarity forged in pain, she chose life. She shed nearly 40 pounds, got off 15 medications, and took back her health and her soul.

This is for every caregiver who’s run out of gas and every loved one who doesn’t know what to say. It’s a story of conviction, love, tough truth—and the grace of starting again.

“If you don’t know what to say to a family caregiver, don’t worry about it — I do!”

- Peter Rosenberger

A Caregiver’s Companion - in bookstores 8/20/2025