Madonna Badger (left) and Oprah
Courtesy of Harpo Studios, Inc./George Burns
10/22/2014 AT 09:25 PM EDT
On Christmas Day in 2011, Badger’s three young daughters and her parents all perished in an accidental fire that raged through her Stamford, Connecticut, home early that morning.
Now, in an exclusive clip, she sits down with Oprah Winfrey for an upcoming episode of Super Soul Sunday on OWN, discussing how she coped in the days following the tragedy.
Asked whether she questioned God for her loss, Badger says, “Oh, yeah, a lot. A lot.” But thanks to meaningful words from the minister who conducted her family’s funeral, she came to a realization.
“He said … God is not a puppeteer … and God cried first,” Badger says. “That really helped me so much.”
She continues, “The God I believe in is not a punishing God, you know, and would never, ever hurt children or do anything in any way to take, make people miserable. My God is full of love. Period.”
Though she and her girls’ father Matthew Badger divorced following the fire, she found love again, marrying in July.
Now, Badger says it’s God who “leads me … teaches me and carries me.”
Her interview with Oprah airs Sunday at 11 a.m. ET on OWN.
