Proverbs 18:24 (AMP)
“The man of too many friends will be broken in pieces and come to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.”
It was my darkest time with cutting. It’s all I thought about and the only thing I wanted to do. Yet, that was the time I saw everyone disappear. The time that I needed people the most but didn’t know how to express it correctly, obviously, the world had ran away. They got scared. Didn’t know how to handle what was happening. I can see that. I get it but guess what, that alone probably killed my heart more than any crap that I was sitting in at the time. So I’m here to tell you, don’t do that, and I can’t either.
Pain is hard and it comes in a million different forms and dealt with in a million different ways but we cannot be fearful of it. We need to sit in it with each other. No one is asking us to play Jesus and make it all go away but they are asking us to BE Jesus. We’ve all had times in our lives when we are hurting so incredibly and aren’t reaching out. We have this assumption that no one wants to deal with us or be with us when life kicks us down. We need to change that. Those are the times when each of us need someone more than ever. There doesn’t need to be words, but man, don’t walk away when people are in need the most even when you are beyond understanding of what to do. I know with me, people couldn’t grasp the fact that I would slice my arms or legs etc. They couldn’t understand why that would do me any good. (That’s for another devo though cause the questions people ask or things they say, super mind blowing!) Because of that not understanding piece, they walked away. I didn’t ask anyone to understand nor did I really care if they did. What was happening was real and was gonna continue whether they stayed or left BUT maybe if they stayed, I would have one less scar on my arm today or one less sleepless night back then. Sitting with someone in their pain isn’t about you, it’s about them. Jesus says, “Never will I leave you, and never will forsake you.” I’m so so grateful for that but guess what, we are here to also live that out for others. We are here so that others can tangibly feel that ‘never leave you’ love. Lots of things made me question my faith back in the day but I can vividly remember this situation being a huge eye opener for me. You know why? Those who walked away from me were supposedly Christians.
Don’t be afraid of someone else’s pain or the way they handle that pain. You aren’t there to fix it but you are there to love, hug, sit, cry, and just be WITH THEM. There’s no greater showing of love than a friend who stands inside the pain of the other.
“A friend is someone who helps you up when you’re down, and if they can’t they lay down beside you and listen.”
Wounded to Warrior 