Originally released as A Time to Die, a Time to Live, the main body of the book remains unchanged. This new edition has been edited to include a study guide for individuals to illuminate their own pathway to joy and freedom.

If you have previously purchased the original title or the audible version you are welcome to go to the Study Guide section of the website and print for individual or group use.

It was years ago I first learned about Stacey’s story—little did I know how intimately involved I would become in both her life and death. Stacey Magargle taught me many lessons, not the least of which is that God is utterly sovereign over the decisions we make. I also learned the painful lesson of learning to think—and think hard—before speaking. I am so glad to now see the story’s revised edition, Letting Go and Letting God Lead, with a study guide added to help readers learn their own timeless lessons about life and death, care and compassion, and how we can best support each other through the toughest of times. The book you hold in your hands is a deeply personal look into the heart of Nancy, Stacey’s mother. I pray that in these pages, you will see how deep and wide a mother’s love will go when faced with impossible choices. And that, perhaps, is the best lesson of all.

- Joni Eareckson Tada, Joni and Friends International Disability Center

Raw. Gripping. A ruthlessly honest look into the heart of a mother’s deep love for her dying daughter and how she learned to let go of the “need to control” and trust in God’s goodness and sovereignty. This book is fundamentally about spiritual formation—drawing closer to the heart of God. I highly recommend it!

- Dr. David Rising, Clinical Psychologist

What people are saying about Letting Go and Letting God Lead:

• A must read. As a pastor and counselor for over 40 years, I would recommend this book and study guide to churches, support groups and individuals as a resource to help those who have faced the devastation of shattered dreams and are seeking hope, renewal, and a closer walk with God. Letting Go and Letting God Lead gives key insights into how lives, attitudes, and thoughts are affected by crises. Magargle vividly describes how her faith was tested as she faced the toughest choice she ever had to make and how she was able to break free from her own personal self-doubt, fears, and hopelessness, to finally receive the peace and comfort of God. The author shares insight into how one can discern God’s will, how our lives can be shaped by loss, our faith strengthened, and our trust in God built up, so that we can receive the comfort God provides (2 Corinthians 1:3-4) and reach out to help others. Magargle’s study guide echoes the apostle Paul’s prayer: “Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely...” (I Thessalonians 5:23).

- Rev. Dr. David W. Ervine, Pastor, Counselor at Day One Ministries, and College Professor, St. Francis University and Penn Highlands Community College.

• Masterful writing, inspirational, faith-strengthening---a volume which should be on pastors' and counselors' desks everywhere.  I liked the idea of the Coping Strategies.  --F. Berry

• This book made me want to be a better Christian.  --D. Hostetter

• Words cannot express how deeply your story touched my life. A raw, honest story of life and death and hope and love. In simplest terms, it is a love story. A mother's love for her daughter, yes, but even more so, our Father's love for us. Every piece of your experience is viewed through the lens of God's Word. Thank you Nancy for bearing your heart and soul that others might learn from your journey. God has received the glory.  --J. Wirt

• Your book blew me away. The beautiful descriptive language you use evokes the presence of God. I am so sorry for your loss, but thank you for sharing it with the world. Your transparency encourages me to tell my own story.  --B. Knorr

• Nancy has opened her heart , soul and mind as she takes you on the journey. She succintly articulates what she is praying, thinking, feeling and doing through this heart- rending experience. Relatives, counselors, pastors and friends stand by her as she above all seeks God's will and accepts God's overpowering love through this experience. Special signs in nature confirm God is in it all just for her.    --A. Swartzentruber - B.S., MT(ASCP)

• Working with grieving individuals for thirty years has taught me so much. We do not have a choice about the devastating experiences God permits in our lives, but we will ultimately choose how to move through the rest of our days. We can do the excruciating work of mourning our losses, or we can avoid and numb our pain. Two different choices with two very different outcomes. Nancy shares her raw vulnerability and powerful transformation with great honesty.

  Letting Go and Letting God Lead is a beautifully written account of one mother’s heartbreaking experience and her determination to find the strength to live abundantly again.

  - Sandra Hare, Certified Grief Recovery Specialist, Hospice Grief Support Group Facilitator

• Letting Go and Letting God Lead invites you into an authentic journey of grief that offers insights into the universal search for God in the midst of suffering and loss. Magargle tenderly leads you to the very bosom of God, a place each of us longs for, peace in the shelter of His Wings, comfort through a more intimate knowledge of God.

  —Reni Weixler, MA, LPC, CPC Licensed Professional Counselor

• Nancy endured the excruciating wrenching of her heart to find the distilled love and mercy of Christ. Her ‘Coping Strategies’ and ‘Questions for Reflection’ guide readers to deeper relationship with God as they travel their own journey on the sacred road of loss and reclamation.”

  - Pastor Timothy Darling, Ph.D. Milton, PA

• Compelling. Articulate. Poignant. I was drawn into the experience. At almost every turn, it kept me asking, ‘What happens next?’ A gift from God that Nancy gives to her readers. The study guide will help readers dig more deeply into the text and into their own experiences and help facilitate spiritual healing and freedom. - Pastor David Martino, Aurora, Ohio

• "What an amazing story of finding Christ in your suffering. You let the reader share in and empathize with your pain. In so doing the reader is better able not just to intellectually grow closer to Jesus, but also to grow closer in the reader’s heart. The study guide provides an excellent resource for spiritual formation." -Bill Lupinacci