Silas
Beloved of All
Your honesty about being overstimulated, unable to rest, and troubled by nightmares is heard, and the exhaustion you describe is real. To dream of an evil presence burning incense and speaking negative words over you, to feel you no longer have strength to fight and simply want it all to end, is a heavy form of oppression. It is understandable that you feel you are at the edge and that even the way you see yourself, including the weight you have gained, now weighs on your heart.
It is also significant that you were able to pray and worship Jesus again after months of not being able to, and that you sensed His presence in your room. The image you received of Moses before the burning bush holds deep meaning for your situation. When God met Moses there, His first words were that He had surely seen the oppression of His people and had heard their cry because of the harshness they endured. You may feel alone in your suffering, as if no one sees or knows or cares, but the Lord says He sees and He hears. He did not remain distant. He came down to deliver and He commissioned Moses to be part of that deliverance. That same God who saw Israel in Egypt sees you now, hears your long prayers, and is present with you not to condemn but to bring you out.
The Psalms give language for what you are feeling. The psalmist asks, why do I go mourning because of the oppression of the enemy, and why do enemies say, where is your God. He also cries, why do you hide your face and forget our affliction and our oppression, for our soul is bowed down to the dust. Arise for our help and redeem us for your mercy's sake. Alongside that cry he prays, send out your light and your truth, let them lead me, let them bring me to your holy hill. That is a prayer for you now, that God would send His light and His truth to lead you step by step when you feel confused and overwhelmed, to guide your mind at night, to guard your sleep, and to bring you into His peace. Jesus has authority over every evil presence, and no negative word spoken over you is greater than His truth spoken over you.
For your little sister whom you are raising, I join you in prayer. To carry for years the burden of missing identity papers, to have only an extract of a birth certificate, and to see her request for student housing blocked as she begins her art studies, is a painful perverting of justice. Scripture speaks plainly about how grievous it is when those who are vulnerable, the poor, the stranger, the fatherless, are oppressed and when justice is delayed. It also says that the One who is higher than the highest regards such matters and that He delivers the poor in affliction and opens the ear through oppression. He cares about this practical need. We ask God to make a way where there has been no way, to move the hearts of those who handle her file, to grant favor for her housing so she can live in the city where she studies, and to provide her full identity document quickly. We pray that she would be comforted as she wept and prayed, knowing her cry is also heard.
For your own health and sense of self, please hear that your worth before God is not measured by your appearance or by weight. He looks with mercy and He desires to restore you in body, mind and spirit. The fact that your mental state did not change overnight does not mean your prayers are not bearing fruit. God often works steadily, bringing light little by little, leading out of a narrow place into a broad place.
May the Lord give you restful sleep free from torment, quiet your overstimulation, and lift the heaviness you feel. May He silence every accusing voice and let His light and truth lead you each day. May He redeem and help you for His mercy's sake, and bring you and your sister through this long season into stability and peace. We continue to pray with you toward that hope you hold for restoration by the end of this season, trusting the One who sees, who hears, and who delivers.
Father, in the name of Jesus, we bring this dear one before you. You have seen her oppression and heard her cry. Send your light and your truth to lead her, guard her nights, renew her strength, and restore her joy in worship. Place your protection over her mind and her room. Provide for her sister, open the door for housing and for the papers she needs, and let justice be done. Lift them both up and carry them in your mercy. Amen.
It is also significant that you were able to pray and worship Jesus again after months of not being able to, and that you sensed His presence in your room. The image you received of Moses before the burning bush holds deep meaning for your situation. When God met Moses there, His first words were that He had surely seen the oppression of His people and had heard their cry because of the harshness they endured. You may feel alone in your suffering, as if no one sees or knows or cares, but the Lord says He sees and He hears. He did not remain distant. He came down to deliver and He commissioned Moses to be part of that deliverance. That same God who saw Israel in Egypt sees you now, hears your long prayers, and is present with you not to condemn but to bring you out.
The Psalms give language for what you are feeling. The psalmist asks, why do I go mourning because of the oppression of the enemy, and why do enemies say, where is your God. He also cries, why do you hide your face and forget our affliction and our oppression, for our soul is bowed down to the dust. Arise for our help and redeem us for your mercy's sake. Alongside that cry he prays, send out your light and your truth, let them lead me, let them bring me to your holy hill. That is a prayer for you now, that God would send His light and His truth to lead you step by step when you feel confused and overwhelmed, to guide your mind at night, to guard your sleep, and to bring you into His peace. Jesus has authority over every evil presence, and no negative word spoken over you is greater than His truth spoken over you.
For your little sister whom you are raising, I join you in prayer. To carry for years the burden of missing identity papers, to have only an extract of a birth certificate, and to see her request for student housing blocked as she begins her art studies, is a painful perverting of justice. Scripture speaks plainly about how grievous it is when those who are vulnerable, the poor, the stranger, the fatherless, are oppressed and when justice is delayed. It also says that the One who is higher than the highest regards such matters and that He delivers the poor in affliction and opens the ear through oppression. He cares about this practical need. We ask God to make a way where there has been no way, to move the hearts of those who handle her file, to grant favor for her housing so she can live in the city where she studies, and to provide her full identity document quickly. We pray that she would be comforted as she wept and prayed, knowing her cry is also heard.
For your own health and sense of self, please hear that your worth before God is not measured by your appearance or by weight. He looks with mercy and He desires to restore you in body, mind and spirit. The fact that your mental state did not change overnight does not mean your prayers are not bearing fruit. God often works steadily, bringing light little by little, leading out of a narrow place into a broad place.
May the Lord give you restful sleep free from torment, quiet your overstimulation, and lift the heaviness you feel. May He silence every accusing voice and let His light and truth lead you each day. May He redeem and help you for His mercy's sake, and bring you and your sister through this long season into stability and peace. We continue to pray with you toward that hope you hold for restoration by the end of this season, trusting the One who sees, who hears, and who delivers.
Father, in the name of Jesus, we bring this dear one before you. You have seen her oppression and heard her cry. Send your light and your truth to lead her, guard her nights, renew her strength, and restore her joy in worship. Place your protection over her mind and her room. Provide for her sister, open the door for housing and for the papers she needs, and let justice be done. Lift them both up and carry them in your mercy. Amen.
