From Betrayed Back To Trust

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to Him, and He will make your paths straight." -Proverbs 3:5-6

Betrayed...
"I can't believe I ever trusted you!" How many times have we all heard these words? Maybe we heard an actress scream them through a veil of fake tears at her costar in a movie about betrayal. Maybe we heard a man bellow them at his soon-to-be ex-girlfriend in the grocery store parking lot in a fit of rage. Maybe we even heard ourselves utter those words in excruciating pain over the actions of the one person we thought "would never let us down." There is no accurate description for the shocking agony that comes with the  realization that a belief we had about someone in our life was based on a complete and total lie. Unfortunately, it is a safe assumption that I do not have to attempt to explain that devastation to anyone reading this post, because at some place, at some time in our lives, someone has let each of us down in some way.

Backstabbed...
Ever had a trusted friend that revealed a humiliating secret about you after promising to never tell? Or had a relied upon significant other who was seeing someone else on the sly, all the while assuring you that "there could never be anyone else"? Or had a child that threw a fit about how you never believe anything they say when it would later be uncovered that what they were claiming at the time was in no way the truth? I do not ask these questions to bring up painful memories for anyone, but to remind us that in some way or another, we have all experienced loss of trust in others, whether temporary or permanent, whether their mistake was an innocent slip-up or an intentional scar inflicted upon us.

Bruised...
Betrayal happens here on this imperfect soil tread by imperfect humans. It happens, and, oh, does it hurt. At best, betrayal can cause us to be aware of the sin in this world, in others, and in ourselves, and draw us closer to the only One who truly will never let us down and who can heal our gaping wounds caused by the pain of it all: God. At worst, it causes us to run and hide from the world that we are so incredibly sick of knocking us down, try with all our might to thicken our skin and harden our hearts, and start to believe that the only one who can pick us up and keep us up...is us and us alone. The devil begins to whisper in his alluring, falsely soothing voice something like this, "God controls everything. And he didn't prevent that person who you loved with all your heart from hurting YOU? He must not care...how could he after allowing something like that? He's just like the others....you can't trust him..."

Believing lies...
It almost makes me tear up to type those words, because Satan has breathed them into my ear more than once, and sadly, often without realizing it, I have been guilty of taking them to heart. Deciding that if no one else is going to protect me and my heart, I will. Me and my understanding, my ways, my plans....we will. Oh, friends, I am here to tell you that it does not work, does not bring peace, does prevent pain, and certainly does not offer the abundant life that Christ offers us (John 10:10).

Back to the truth...back to trust

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart.." Turning over our bruised feelings, wounded pride, battered emotions, and broken heart over to the One who created it and can and will heal it in His way and His time

"...and lean not on your own understanding..." Turning over our carefully prepared plans, fearful ideas about what is to come, and  knowledge based on what we see to the One who knows all and sees all, from the very beginning of time to eternity; read Isaiah 55:8-9

"...in all your ways submit to Him..." Turning over what we want to think, believe, say, and do to the One who knows what effect those actions will have on us and the world around us; when we genuinely seek Him about what to do and when, He is faithful to tell us (read Matthew 7:7-8)

"...and He will make your paths straight..." Turning over our desires for a painless path, a controlled-by-us path to the One who knows the path that leads to righteousness, holiness, and godliness...the One who will hold our hand every step down that path, pick us up every time we fall, and never betray us or let us down...despite all the lies the devil may spout to the contrary


Prayer
Dear Heavenly Father, Thank You so very much that you promise many times to never leave us nor forsake us. Thank You that Your Word assures us that You do not lie or change Your mind (Numbers 23:19). What You say, You mean. We can trust in You, even when we can trust in no one else. That being said, God, You know how much betrayal by others and other disappointments in this life hurt us. How they tempt us to turn from what we know to be true to what we think we can control on our own. We ask that you heal each and every person reading this that is broken and bruised from trusting in someone or something that let them down. Wrap Your everlasting, loving arms around that person and remind them that though men, women, boys, and girls will disappoint us on this Earth, You, Our Father in Heaven never will. And that You can bring restoration and guidance to the lives of Your children whenever we seek it in truth and in humility. Thank You for all that You are and all that You do for us. We love You. In Jesus's name, Amen!