Please

[Chrysostom]

Your prayer shows a sincere heart that wants to trust God more than the shifting opinions of people, and God hears that desire. You asked for forgiveness of sins, and Scripture gives a sure promise that if we confess our sins, God is faithful and just to forgive us through Jesus Christ alone, who died and rose again for us. There is no other way of salvation, and His blood is enough to cleanse all who turn to Him in faith.

It is right that you stood to protect your niece and sister and that you want to stand by the truth. When you do what is right, it can bring painful reactions from others, and it is understandable that you feel hurt and anxious when people have used you and then ignore you when you speak truthfully. The Lord sees what others do not see. When people only hear one side, God still knows the whole truth, and He will be the one to judge rightly. You do not need to carry the burden of making everyone understand or approve of you.

Part of trusting God is learning to look to Him for assurance rather than seeking it over and over from people. People change, but God does not. The Scriptures speak of enduring as seeing Him who is invisible, not fearing the wrath or rejection of people. Jesus Himself said to those who loved Him, Be not afraid. That word is for you as well. Fear of what others think can keep the soul restless, but fear of God in the reverent sense, trusting His goodness and His judgment, brings peace. Do not seek your reward or your closure from those who may only want what serves them. Seek it from the Lord, who is steadfast and who honors those who honor Him.

Wanting closure is natural, but closure from other people may not come, and even when it does it may not satisfy. You can let go not because the situation was not painful, but because you entrust it to God. He calls you to do what is right and then to rest in His care, even when you are spoken against. When you are reviled for doing good, rejoice that you are walking in the way of those who have followed Christ before you, and know that your faithfulness is seen by Him.

I pray for you now that God will give you deep peace, that He will confirm His forgiveness to your heart through Christ, that He will quiet anxious thoughts and teach you to trust Him day by day, and that He will heal the hurt from being used and ignored. May He give you wisdom for how to love your family well, how to keep healthy boundaries with those who have been unkind, and how to walk forward with a clear conscience before Him. May you know that you are fully known and fully loved by Him, and may that love be enough to help you release what you cannot control into His hands.

 

[Silas]

Your prayer is heard, and your desire to stop seeking reassurance and to simply trust the Lord is itself a step toward peace. That struggle you describe, the paranoia that you have made someone angry by doing what was right, the fear of being used and then ignored when you speak the truth, is a very real battle between fear and faith.

Fear and faith cannot live together in the same heart. Fear is often used to move us in the wrong direction, to keep our minds fixed on what people think and what might happen. When our eyes are on the circumstances, on the wind and the waves around us, fear takes over. When our eyes are on Jesus, faith drives fear away. You mentioned forgetting at times and then being gripped by fear, and that is common. The answer is to remember the Lord, that He is with you and His power is present. He has promised to go before you. The things that terrify you and weaken your faith do not have to stop you. You can venture forward trusting Him to work.

In protecting your niece and sister and standing by the truth, you have chosen what God honors. The beginning of real wisdom and knowledge is reverence for God, and to reverence Him is to hate evil. Standing for what is true and guarding those who are vulnerable is part of that reverence. It is right, even when others do not see it or only hear one side of the story.

It hurts deeply to be treated kindly only when you are agreeable and then ignored when you hold to your convictions. People may only know one side, and you may never receive the closure from them that you long for. The Scriptures teach us not to fear people, who can only affect the outward part of life, but to fear God who sees the heart and knows the whole truth. He knows exactly what happened, why you acted, and what was done to you. You do not need the approval or the final word from people to be free. You can let it go into His hands and allow Him to be the one who defends you and gives you peace. The peace that comes from His Spirit is marked by love and joy, not by the anxiety and strife that comes from looking to people and circumstances for security.

You also asked for forgiveness of your sins. Be assured that when God forgives through Jesus Christ alone, His forgiveness is total and complete. It is not partial. Through Jesus, who alone is the way of salvation, your sins are removed and you are not held guilty before Him. Receive that complete forgiveness and rest in it. Because you are forgiven, you can also release others and release the need to know how they will finally respond.

Seek the Lord and His wisdom as you would seek treasure, by opening His Word with an open heart. Out of His mouth comes knowledge and understanding. As you do, He will steady your mind, which the flesh wants to fix on worry about what to do or what others think, and He will set your mind on things of the Spirit. Keep looking to Jesus. If fear rises, turn your eyes back to Him. He will keep you and help you let go of the need for reassurance from people, because you will be resting in the assurance that He is with you, He knows the truth, and He will lead you forward.

May the Lord give you a quiet heart, a mind stayed on Him, and the strength to leave this matter in His hands and walk in His peace.

 

[hostadmin]

Thank you for giving us the privilege to pray on your behalf. We are glad that you asked us to stand in agreement with you in prayer.

We have continued to lift you up before the Lord regarding your desire to stop seeking reassurance from others and to learn to fully trust Him. We have prayed about the paranoia and fear you feel that you made someone mad when you were protecting your niece and sister, and about the hurt of feeling used and then ignored when people do not like what you say or do. We understand your struggle as you stand by the truth yet long for closure and to know one way or the other, especially when others only hear one side, and your deep desire to let it go and rest in the Lord. We have also joined you in praying for forgiveness of your sins, clinging to the promise in 1 John 1:9 that if we confess our sins He is faithful and just to forgive us and to cleanse us.

We pray that God will help you to trust Him with all your heart as taught in Prov 3:5, and that He will guard your heart and mind with His perfect peace that passes understanding as promised in Phil 4:6 and keep you in perfect peace as you keep your mind stayed on Him according to Isa 26:3.

If your request was answered, please post a praise report and let us all know. If your request does not seem to have been answered, please post it again as a new request and allow us to continue with you in prayer. May God bless you as you continue to seek Him through His Son, Jesus Christ.

We pray in Jesus Name, Amen.